There was a time it appeared Donnie Freeman was going to join Kentucky Basketball for the 2026-27 season.
However, an 11th-hour push from Rick Pitino led to Freeman ultimately signing with the St. John’s Red Storm, a move that some thought could be a crippling blow to Mark Pope’s career as head coach of the Wildcats, as he was enduring recruiting miss after recruiting miss early this offseason.
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Thankfully, Kentucky rebounded to get other transfers like Justin McBride and Milan Momcilovic, along with international big man Ousmane N’Diaye, to potentially play the 4 spot next season.
And sadly, Freeman won’t be playing at all after the Syracuse transfer suffered an Achilles injury during summer workouts, according to Pitino.
This is a brutal blow for the Johnnies, as Freeman was expected to have a major role next season and potentially become an All-American candidate after averaging 16.5 points and 7.2 rebounds last season.
However, injuries have been a problem throughout Freeman’s college career thus far, so taking his commitment was going to be a risk for any school, one that seemingly wasn’t going to pay off if he’s already injured as the summer practice season gets started.
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Here’s to hoping Freeman makes a full recovery and is back on the floor when the 2027-28 season tips off.
