When the 2023-24 college basketball season tips off in November, there will be enough former Kentucky Wildcats playing elsewhere to fill out an entire roster.
As of now, 11 ex-UK basketball players will be with other programs next season. If the still-deliberating Antonio Reeves decides to finish his college career at another school, that number would rise to 12.
Obviously, at this point in the offseason, John Calipari could probably use a veteran or two from that bunch to fill out a 2023-24 Kentucky roster that, so far, includes only freshmen and sophomores among its scholarship players. But all these players have moved on from UK’s program, and — while they’ve had little team success after departing Lexington — several have turned into quality college basketball players and most are expected to play major roles for their current programs next season. Here’s a look at those 11 former Wildcats, where they are now, and their outlook for 2023-24.
Career so far: The former Kentucky Mr. Basketball from Pendleton County sat out his first year at UK due to injuries. He was a brief sensation in his first season on the court, coming out of nowhere to hit seven threes and score 23 points off the bench in a double-overtime win at Mississippi State (after scoring just seven points and appearing in only four games to that point in the 2020-21 season). Allen had a couple of other big games as a redshirt freshman, but he didn’t play much toward the end of the season and was used sparingly as a sophomore. He transferred to Western Kentucky and got off to a slow start there before emerging as one of the Hilltoppers’ top scorers midway through last season. He averaged 9.3 points and shot 37.6 percent on threes for WKU in 2022-23.
Outlook for 2023-24: Allen will look to build on his solid ending to last season with an even better showing next season, and the Toppers will be going through a period of transition with Rick Stansbury out as head coach and Steve Lutz now in charge of the program. WKU won’t be projected as an NCAA Tournament team, but Allen should get plenty of opportunities to be one of the program’s best players this season.
