Taking an early look at Kentucky’s potential starting five, without and without the nation’s No. 1 overall recruit

In spite of an up-and-down offseason that, thus far, has been more defined by misses than hits, everything goes in favor of a potential Tyran Stokes commitment. Kentucky’s backcourt is already strong, but after missing on Donnie Freeman, fans (fairly) lost hope in Mark Pope’s overarching process as a result.

But if Pope lands the nation’s No. 1 overall recruit? Well, things change immediately. Pope’s offseason goes from a toss-up to a total win, and the structure of Kentucky’s roster would hereafter center around the star forward. One change can change everything.

Though either way, with the portal now closed and Kentucky’s list of targets seeming relatively concrete, I feel confident in taking a shot at the Cats’ eventual lineup; one with their most desired target and one, in a less desirable scenario, without him.

With Stokes

PG: Zoom Diallo

SG: Alex Wilkins

SF: Tyran Stokes

PF: Kam Williams

C: Malachi Moreno

Given the financial commitment that will inherently come tied to Stokes, the most seismic change of pace in this hypothetical rotation may be Kam Williams sliding to the four-spot. It’d make sense given his experience in the SEC last season, and within Kentucky and Pope’s system.

He may be relatively undersized at the position yet, all the same, so-called “small ball” is far from uncommon in college basketball today. In fact, given this lineup, Kentucky could score effectively at pretty much any level in positions one-through-four.

It’s a downright dangerous concept that bears Stokes in the center, even if Williams starting and playing out of position both aren’t necessarily ideal.

Without Stokes

Inversely, without Stokes, a slightly different concept comes to mind:

PG: Zoom Diallo

SG: Alex Wilkins

SF: Kam Williams

PF: Justin McBride

C: Malachi Moreno

Currently on a visit to Kentucky, McBride seems to be the team’s preferred option to plug in at power forward, now that the aforementioned Freeman is off the board. The high-scoring mid-major forward is entering his last year of eligibility and, from all angles, should at least serve as a solid pickup for immediate impact.

From this view, too, Williams remains in what is more than likely a better spot for him, leaking out to the wing and doing his damage from wherever he pleases. Stokes is, of course, the catalyst in either scenario, and it isn’t entirely impossible that Pope and his staff pay up for a big fish not yet on the Wildcats’ radar.

Both of these lineups is good, although only one is likely to be great. Although, this is just my (perhaps pessimistic) projection based on what we know. The Wildcats and Mark Pope have an entire offseason ahead of them, and things are likely to change on a daily basis.

For now, BBN, keep a thumb on the Stokes recruitment. We’ll all do our breathing exercises and go cautiously from there.