"These are guys we would be proud to call our sons": Kentucky HC Mark Pope details how Wildcats' 2024-25 roster was put together

Kentucky Wildcats coach Mark Pope had a solid first season with the team. The Wildcats reached the Sweet 16 before they were eliminated by the Tennessee Volunteers 78-65 on March 28.

On Wednesday, during an interview with basketball analyst Jon Rothstein on CBS Sports College Basketball's YouTube channel, Pope was asked how he built team chemistry despite his players barely playing with each other leading up to the 2024-2025 season.

"The guys that we're looking for that fit us, they're a little bit of a specific niche group and so it makes, it actually makes it really fun and challenging," Pope said (04:45). "And, I think part of the reason why is because, why we had the success we did with a completely revamped roster last year."

The coach added that the bond fueled them to build synergy.

"In fact, we were a first and only one in a number of statistical success categories last year with a totally revamped roster," Pope said. "I think a lot of the reason was because we were able to take in all that data. First and foremost about what type of people these were. The guys I got to coach last year, these are guys that all of us would be proud to call our sons, man.

"They're incredible young men, and they adopted this place and embraced it and wore this jersey with such tremendous pride. And so, when you start from a place like that, and then you get to kind of cherry pick the specific skill sets that work with you, it was actually a wonderful project. And, our guys came through in a big way."

The Wildcats finished with a 24-12 overall record and 10-8 in Southeastern Conference play.

Mark Pope shares some of the advantages with recruiting from the transfer portal

Mark Pope also shared that a big factor in how he built great team chemistry quickly is the moves the Kentucky Wildcats made in the transfer portal. He added that there are advantages to how it works now.

"There are real advantages in terms of you get to see players, all of their data, all of their film, all of their experience, all of their media interactions, all of their social interactions, all their interactions with a fan base," Pope said. "All those things come into play, and you actually get to evaluate players based on all of that data."

This offseason, Pope and the Wildcats have already secured the commitments of Andrija Jelavic, Malachi Moreno and Mouhamed Dioubate for the 2025-2026 campaign.