MRI Negative on Jaland Lowe’s Shoulder

Jaland Lowe drives around Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno during Friday's Blue-White Game. (Vicky Graff Photo)

Coach Mark Pope’s second University of Kentucky team has proven depth at every position except point guard, where Pittsburgh transfer Jaland Lowe is being counted on to be the team’s leader and primary point guard, much like Lamont Butler was a year ago.

Kentucky’s worst-case scenario going into the season would be an injury to Lowe that would force Pope to turn to freshman Jasper Johnson, sophomore Collin Chandler, or Florida senior transfer Denzel Aberdeen as the primary point guard or use a combination of the trio to run the point.

During Friday night’s Blue-White Event, Lowe was dribbling the ball on the wing when he got tangled up with defender Otega Oweh, who hooked Lowe’s right forearm with his left hand while Lowe was dribbling with his left hand. Lowe went to the floor, grabbing his right shoulder with his left hand.

Lowe told the UK training staff the shoulder “popped out,” and it looked like they popped it back in place before he left the court without moving his right arm.

“He tweaked his shoulder, so we’ll see,” Pope said after the game. “We sat him down out of precaution. We’ll see how it responds tomorrow. He’s an incredibly tough young man, so I’m sure whatever it is, he’ll battle it well.”

From what sources told me, the MRI on Lowe’s shoulder was negative. He had been fine since suffering a fall in June, and apparently, there’s a chance this could have been related to that fall about four months ago.

It was not a full dislocation of the shoulder, as it did not completely pop out of place and had to be “maneuvered a little bit” to get it back fully in place.

It’s unlikely Lowe will play against Purdue in Friday’s exhibition game, and an exact timetable for his full return will not be known for several days at best.

Remember when Butler hurt his left shoulder at midseason last year, he had to wear a harness on the shoulder the rest of the season, which limited his mobility.

“He was a little down after getting hurt and not knowing how severe the injury might be, but he was fine Saturday, knowing he will be getting back relatively soon,” the source told me.