Tulane Athletics Photo
Trying to keep up with players going into the transfer portal and also preparing for NCAA Tournament games was no easy task but Kentucky coach Mark Pope understands NCAA games mean more exposure and welcomed the extra work.
“Trying to keep all that organized is a huge task, but it’s really exciting because there are incredibly talented players,” Pope said earlier this week. “I think guys have seen the massive success that our transfers have had this year, and I expect that we’re going to have great success recruiting the portal.”
That success started Friday before Kentucky lost to Tennessee in the Sweet Sixteen when Tulane freshman Kam Williams announced he was transferring to UK. The 6-8, 190-pound Williams averaged 9.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.0 blocks per game last season. He shot 41 percent from 3-point range and started 28 games.
During his first year with the Wave, Williams posted 13 games in double figures including a career-high 24 points in the regular season finale against UAB on March 9. He also led all freshmen in The American Conference in minutes averaging 32.18 minutes on the floor which ranked 12th in the conference.
Williams told ESPN he also considered Florida, Louisville, Baylor, Texas, LSU, Texas Tech, Arkansas and USC but he picked UK without even making a visit to Kentucky.
“Not many people get opportunities like this, so I wanted to pull the trigger fast. More people are waiting to fill that spot, so I had to take advantage,” Williams told ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. “My dream is to play in the NBA.
“Kentucky’s culture and background shows that they care about their players, especially developing them into the best players they can be.”
Williams had indicated he would also test the NBA Draft possibilities but now says he will delay that possibility for another year after committing to Kentucky. He told Givony that another year of college basketball would help develop his understanding of the game more and help his NBA stock.
Kentucky will lose Amari Williams, Andrew Carr, Jaxson Robinson, Koby Brea, Lamont Butler and Jaxson Robinson off this year’s team. They are six of the team’s top seven scorers.
College basketball statistician Evan Miyakawa has Williams ranked as the No. 179 available player in the transfer portal.
Field of 68 Daily writer Sean Paul was on the Willams bandwagon in early February.
“I’m very very excited about the next few years of Tulane star freshman @KamWilliams_3’s career. Williams is 6-8, very athletic, can legitimately defend just about anybody on the court. But can make life tough for guards with his size and quickness,” Paul posted on X.
Rated a four-star prospect and the second-rated player in Louisiana according to ESPN coming out of Lafayette Christian Academy, he helped Lafayette Christian reach the 2024 Allstate Sugar Bowl/LHSAA state tournament quarterfinals as a senior finishing with a 26-8 record.
12 Responses
He’s going to be good.
We need Ament. Not sure if we really have a good shot or not. We appeared to at the beginning.
Don’t know if it’s real but I just heard that we got Ament.
Pretty sure what I saw is not real. Fake news.
no did not get him
Postponed his decision. Kentucky is in his top 5.
Ament has chosen Arkansas.
Ament Has Not Chosen Anyone.
Could be a great player, however you are betting on a to be sophomore ranked 179 in the Portal. Hope Pope can bring in a couple big guys and wings ranked in the top 20. It will be a very average class without Ament.
This kid had a good freshman year and has 3 years left. He can play the 2 or 3 spot. He shot over 40% from 3. He defends and rebounds. This was a great get for coach Pope!
Rumors have Oweh going pro and Garrison to the portal. Perry is the only one that has actually said yes to coming back so far.
I have a feeling only a couple of guys come back off this team. If you get 3-5 guys to come back nowadays that is considered winning. I wouldn’t be surprised if all 3 freshman come back but I think Chandler is the wildcard to maybe transfer back out west. Most guys from the West Coast always transfer back to the West Coast. Garrison is a 50/50 Kerr is a 50/50. Oweh is gone which I think will be a bad decision on his part. He could slide up the draft boards a little more with a year of improvement on his jump shot. He could probably make just as much if not more money coming back to college for one more year. Kam Williams is going to be a good reserve this year. Someone who can give the 2 and the 3 a break and not fall off to much. He will definitely improve and I see him averaging close to the same thing next year around 9ppg. I think Garrison really takes off next year. He has a average 3 point shot for the stretch 4 position. But he will get better defensively every year.