Kentucky fans got massive news on Sunday night as it was announced that Malachi Moreno will be back in Lexington for his sophomore season. When Moreno put his name in the NBA Draft after the conclusion of his freshman season, Kentucky fans didn’t believe he was going to stay in the draft, but things heated up quickly for the seven-footer. Moreno saw his name inside the first round of many NBA Mock Drafts, and BBN was scared.
After boosting up mock drafts and working out for multiple NBA teams, Moreno pulled his name out of the NBA Draft and will be the man in the middle for Mark Pope’s Wildcats next season. Now that Moreno is officially back at Kentucky, Coach Pope has one more job this offseason, and that is to land Milan Momcilovic.
Mar 27, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Milan Momcilovic (22) reacts in the first half against the Tennessee Volunteers during a Sweet Sixteen game of the Midwest Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
Right now, without Momcilovic, the Wildcats could be a serviceable team, but if they add the nation’s best three-point shooter, this team could be very good. Right now, Momcilovic is deciding if he will be back in college next season or if he will keep his name in the NBA Draft.
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It seems like most believe that he will be back in college next season, but if this does happen, Pope will have to land the sharpshooter. St. John’s and Louisville are two schools that will be involved if Momcilovic pulls his name out of the draft, and Pope has lost recruiting battles to Pat Kelsey and Rick Pitino, so the Wildcats head coach has to get the job done.
Mar 22, 2026; St. Louis, MO, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Milan Momcilovic (22) speaks during the postgame press conference after the game against the Kentucky Wildcats during a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Le-Imagn Images | Jeff Le-Imagn Images
Without Momcilovic, this Kentucky team will be middle of the road at best in the SEC and would more than likely be in a similar position to last season, which didn’t go the way fans wanted it to. Kentucky has some players who are capable of overachieving next season and getting the Wildcats over the hump, but without Momcilovic, Kentucky would be relying on this to happen to be a good team.
Now that Moreno is officially back in Lexington for another season, all of Big Blue Nation will immediately turn its attention to the Momcilovic sweepstakes. Pope has missed on most of his top targets in the portal this cycle, so fans are hoping that with all the money Kentucky has left, Pope will be able to get the job done landing the 6’8 sharpshooter.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/kentucky as With Malachi Moreno back at Kentucky Mark Pope has one final job to complete .
