Kentucky has the style of play that could mirror Pope's identity

Coach Mark Pope's third team at Kentucky has the potential to take on his identity based on his early assessment.

"I think this team can comfortably work its way into playing the style of play that I think is winning basketball," he said during media day on Monday. " I also think it's creative basketball. I think it's really hard-to-guard basketball, and I think it's a really connected basketball on the defensive end. I think there are a lot of the components on this team that can do it, and I think we're trying to grow into that."

The Kentucky coach said his team will be physical and has "physicality" from all different spaces on the roster and also more length than his first two teams in Lexington.

"We're going to compensate for any space where we're dealt with skill and shooting and length," he said. "I think our length is going to have to be a big factor. ... Length is our strength. So the question is, can we use it? Can we make it something that impacts every single possession? There are a lot of ways to do that."

Aside from building his team around returning forward Malachi Moreno, Pope specifically wanted "creators on the floor to play the way that we love to play this beautiful basketball that we love to play."

"I think we've answered that well," Pope said.

Pope said Malachi has developed into a creator underneath and had three assists in five minutes during a scrimmage last Saturday. The backcourt, anchored by Zoom Diallo and Alex Wilkins, will be counted on to create on both ends of the court.

"Zoom Diallo is an extraordinary connector of people in a locker room," Pope said. "He might be one of the best connectors that I've ever had the opportunity to coach. ee's really special that way and he's a physical guard. ... It's been so impressive to watch him during the course of the summer. Every time we went on a team retreat at the end of the summer, we spent a couple of days all together the whole time, and every time you saw somebody kind of like just wander off, Zoom had this magical ability to go in and collect them and bring them back into the group."

To complement Diallo, Wilkins and freshman guard Mason Williams, Pope's perimeter will feature sharpshooter Milan Momcilovic.

"We think that our shooting is going to be elite," he said. "We think that we shoot it really, really well, and we have a depth of shooters and that's important for us."

He added that "the length component of this is really fun."

"Of all that, the thing I've been most excited about is our cutting, and you know that's a major part of what we do," Pope said. "Our guys have bought into cutting hard, cutting hard, cutting hard. There's so much movement on the floor for us right now that it's pretty exciting."

TOP QUESTION

Student Ricky Lumpkin, son of former Kentucky defensive lineman Ricky Lumpkin, asked the first question, asking Pope what it felt like to be tall.

"One, it gives you some advantages as a basketball player, and I love this game so much," Pope said. "It gives you advantages as a coach because you actually have a different view. You can actually see more things from the perspective, and when you take your family to Disneyland, it gives you a massive advantage because your girls can always find you in the crowd."

INJURY UPDATE

Kentucky senior guard Jerone Morton injured his knee in practice earlier this week and will be re-evaluated the next two weeks ... Momcilovic has been cleared to practice without a splint ... Trent Noah's hamstring is "progressing well" and may return for the season opener against Manhattan... Kam Williams is also expected to make a full recovery before the season opener.