View the most recent Kentucky basketball roster for the 2024–25 season, coached by John Calipari.

LEXINGTON: This is one of the most exciting offseasons in John Calipari’s coaching career at the University of Kentucky basketball team.

Athletics director Mitch Barnhart defended Calipari, who will return for his 16th season with the Wildcats in 2024–25, as fan anger reached a breaking point following another opening-weekend loss for UK in the NCAA Tournament.

With a view toward achieving those objectives through the transfer portal, Calipari stated he intends to make the squad for the upcoming season older and more physically fit. His plan hasn’t worked out too well because on March 28, forward Adou Thiero—who possessed all those qualities—entered the transfer portal. Two days later, Thiero provided clarification regarding his situation and his plans in a statement: While he has left open the potential of playing for Kentucky in the upcoming season, he will take a look at the NBA draft. Freshman Justin Edwards, another Wildcat who may have contributed experience the following season, filed to enter the draft on April 4.

Which Kentucky basketball players entered NCAA transfer portal?

F Adou Thiero (6-foot-8, 222 pounds, So.): After playing sparingly as a freshman in 2022-23, Thiero established himself as a starter last season, in the lineup for 19 of his 25 appearances. He averaged 7.2 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, with a standout showing versus then-No. 1 Kansas at the Champions Classic in Chicago on Nov. 14, when Thiero set single-game personal bests in points (16) and rebounds (13). While he missed seven games in the middle of the season, he returned to start 11 of the Wildcats’ final 14 outings. Expected to take on an even larger role for Kentucky in 2024-25, Thiero was the first player to reveal his intentions for next season, entering the transfer portal Thursday. If he does not remain in the 2024 NBA Draft, UK hopes it can convince Thiero to return to Lexington.

Which UK basketball players declared for 2024 NBA Draft?

G Justin Edwards (6-foot-8, 203 pounds, Fr.): As expected upon his signing, Edwards’ time with the Wildcats lasted only one season. A mainstay in the Wildcats’ 2023-24 lineup, Edwards started 31 of the 32 games in which he appeared. Edwards averaged 8.8 points and 3.4 rebounds in 21.4 minutes per game. He was the highest-ranked signee in the nation’s top-ranked 2023 recruiting class. Edwards even entered the season projected as the top overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft by CBS Sports. But his lone season in Lexington had its share of ups and downs. He went nine straight games (from late December and continuing through January) without posting a double-digit point total. Edwards ended that skid with 17 points in a win at Vanderbilt. That jump-started a strong finish to the season offensively, as he scored 10-plus points six times in Kentucky’s final 10 games — highlighted by a 28-point outburst against Alabama at Rupp Arena on Feb. 24. Where he’ll go in the draft — if he’s selected at all — is uncertain. In his draft declaration, Edwards did not mention the possibility of returning for a second season at UK.