Mark Pope and Kentucky basketball land Jaxson Robinson! | Kentucky Wildcats Podcast
Kentucky basketball needed a scoring leader to add to this year’s roster and they finally got one in Jackson [Music] Robinson you are locked on Kentucky your daily podcast on the Kentucky Wildcats part of the locked on podcast Network your team everyday all right what’s going on Big Blue Nation welcome on into locked on Kentucky your daily Kentucky Wildcats podast podcast I’m your host Lance DAW and on today’s episode of lockon Kentucky very very very exciting news Jackson Robinson has withdrawn from the 2024 NBA draft and he is committed to Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats going to dive into that on today’s episode just how significant this addition is to kuy’s roster they needed a proven score and they got one also on today’s episode going to talk about a fourstar point guard in the 2025 class that is taking a visit to Kentucky later on in June pretty interesting score is Kaden Lewis going to talk about what he brings to the table and what he did during the most recent ebl circuit thank you so much for making lockon Kentucky your first listen every single day want to remind everyone out there that we are free and available on all platforms if you are watching on YouTube I would greatly appreciate it if you subscribe to the show and if you are listening on podcast I would also appreciate it if you subscri subcribed there as well let’s go ahead and get into it Jackson Robinson is officially a Kentucky Wildcat in case you did not see all of the drama that unfolded yesterday with the 2024 NBA draft withdrawal deadline he Robinson was supposed to make an announcement as to whether or not he was staying in the NBA draft or returning to college by midnight eastern time and of course that time rolled around and there was no answer from Robson as to whether or not he was going to stay or come back and we waited and waited and waited for a couple of hours after that up until about 2: in the morning and there was still no answer so Kentucky fans went to bed kind of confused and kind of in shock that there was not an update and then we got an update earlier today at about 11:00 that Kentucky was in fact going to get Jackson Robinson he’s coming to Lexington Not only was he withdrawing from the draft but he was just straight up committing to Kentucky as soon as he pulled out which is just insane that we didn’t have to sit here and discuss whether or not he was going to go to BYU or Kansas we talked about it on the show if you you’ve been listening for the past week or so we talked about what people in BYU were saying about Robinson about how Kentucky has really been the only school that can maintain contact with him over these past several weeks during the NBA draft combine Kentucky and Pope were right there with him every step of the way he hadn’t really reached out to BYU Kansas as much as they may have been interested in him he was not really con having any conversations with Kansas it was just exclusively Pope through the process super super excited about this Edition Kentucky fans should be elated that they were able to bring in a true score to this roster a season ago at BYU 14.2 points per game while shooting 42.6% from the floor 35 1.2% from three 90% from the foul line also averaged 2 and 1/2 rebounds 1.3 assists and7 blocks per game up and down this roster if you look at the different players at different positions you’ll see really really good players that are efficient especially when it comes to catch and shoot situations guys that fit this roster well personnel-wise but you don’t really see a true proven score somebody that’s going to go out there and be a volume guy for you regardless of whether or not he’s efficient Robinson perfectly fits the role that Kentucky needs at that position is he going to play shooting guard or small forward or maybe even a little bit of the four that’s something that we’re going to have a conversation about as we continue to dive deeper into the summer and the offseason by the way uh wild cats will start practices on June 17th they will be working together then maybe we’ll get a feel for where Robinson lands in this lineup but they needed a score and they got one and something that I’ve seen online and I’ve seen different people will discuss is whether or not Robinson really does fit well at Kentucky because of the fact that statistically he’s not as efficient as other players on this team and I think that that is an interesting conversation to have because of the fact that Jackson Robinson is still statistically above average when it comes to efficiency he right now again like I mentioned is averaging 35.4% from Beyond The Arc that is 1.2% above the national average he shoots 73.4% at The Rim which is 15% above the national average he shoots 90% from the foul line that’s almost 19% above the national average 1.6% above the average in true shooting percentage and 2.4% above the average an effective field goal percentage he’s gotten better essentially every single year that he’s been in college when it comes to game score and usage rate he has continued to also approve his game in terms of shot selection I believe something that Brandon Ramsey of ksr pointed out is he has been uh really more uh intent on making shots inside the ark he’s really trying to hone that craft and he jumped from about 47.5% to a little over 53% in terms of midrange uh shot statistically I think that that is a really interesting spot to see Robinson in especially when you talk about the players surrounding him and where they’re going to be on the court in terms of space I think that’s a shot that Robinson will probably be able to get consistently uh this season he’s a good player he he is a good player that only played 26 and A2 minutes a season ago at BYU my guess is that he’ll be somewhere around that if not more for this season an analytics say he’s an above average scorer who was able to Knocked Down some shots with a decent efficiency rate at a high volume also an interesting post here from Kyle Tucker over on Twitter I’ll see if I can pull this up for you guys really quickly this is a notable tweet uh according to Kyle Tucker of the athletic at Kyle Tucker a he said in BYU’s six best wins last season Kansas bayor Texas Iowa State and San Diego State oh NC State Jackson Robinson averaged 16.8 points shot 41.5% from three and hit 16 of 17 free throws he stepped up in the big moments when BYU asked him to my only my only uh analysis here is he’s a he’s a big shot taker a big shot maker he stepped up I believe also in the in the loss against Dukane if I’m not mistaken in a big time way U he does really thrive in the moment and even though his statistics are not as good as other players on this roster I think that he is going to be the perfect go-to score for the wild cats this upcoming season whenever I say compared to everybody else on this roster I hope I’m very clear everybody else on this roster outside of your Lamont Butler uh l m Butler Edition at point guard every single player is really really good at shooting the basketball especially in catch and shoot situations like Kentucky got some high quality guys there so just because Robinson is a few percentage points behind some of these different guys doesn’t mean he’s bad he’s actually still pretty dang good so I don’t think there’s any concern there I love this addition I’m super excited about it if you didn’t see go check out his Instagram by the way him posting the boom uh the boom picture on Instagram was really really funny uh love this addition super excited to see where Robinson slides in in this rotation and at at this point the roster is pretty much done right now Kentucky is focusing on will Riley or wuga popper uh to fill that final scholarship spot which one will they get we’ll talk about that over the coming weeks as Riley takes a visit and hopefully popper does here soon let me know what you think about Jackson Robinson coming to the Kentucky Wildcats you can leave your thoughts in the YouTube comments below or you can hit me on the socials at locked onuk all right we’ve got a fourstar point guard that has scheduled a visit to the Kentucky Wildcats what do we know about him how did he perform during the ebl circuit it was pretty dang good going to talk about that player in just a second before I do that though I do want to tell you guys about our friends over at game time it is playoff time in the NBA right now and it has been super super fun and we are heading closer towards the vinyls as the Mavs and the Timberwolves play tonight my expectation is that PJ Washington and the Mavs are going to be able to eliminate the te- wolves and Kentucky will have a player in the NBA Finals to face off against the Boston Celtics should be pretty fun and let’s say you’re praying on Boston’s downfall as the kids would like to say and let’s say you want to go check out an NBA Finals game well there is one place that you need to go to get your tickets and that is game time game time makes getting tickets to the NBA finals even faster and easier in prices on the app actually go down the closer it gets to tip off killer last minute deals all in prices views from your seat and then their lowest price guarantee game time takes the guesswork out of buying NBA tickets I have loved using game time over the past year or so going to different MLB events college football events and now you can check out the NBA Finals here with game time take the guesswork out of buying your NBA final tickets with Game Time by downloading the app creating an account using Code locked on college for $20 off your first purchase again terms apply create an account redeem code locked on college for 20 bucks off your first purchase download game time today last minute tickets lowest price guaranteed all right continuing along here on the Thursday edition of locked on Kentucky Lance doll hanging out here with you super excited about this addition to the roster Jackson Robinson coming on down to Lexington again let me know what you think in the comments below if you want to join the locked on Kentucky Discord would highly encourage you guys to do that about 200 of you in there already talking about all things Kentucky basketball football baseball anything UK related it’s been super fun over the last 24 hours just getting to discuss different things with you guys about what’s going on with Robinson and the program if you want to join the Discord it’s free to join at lore on Twitter is where you can find it is it is a pinned tweet the link to join the server um would encourage you guys to join up it’s going to be a super fun place so just kind of chill chat as the season gets closer I think it’s going to be even more of a fun place to join so go ahead and get in there again at lall on Twitter is where you can find that link okay so a Kaden Lewis has scheduled a visit to Kentucky in case you don’t know who that is he is a fourstar point guard in the 2025 class at 6’2 6’3 different sites have him at 62 63 combo guard out of Washington DC if I’m not mistaken he was actually Gatorade Player of the Year in District of Columbia uh just a season ago a really really interesting scorer here he’s a top 100 Prospect nationally according to the 247 Sports composite rating system he’s the number 79 overall Prospect number 12 combo guard and the number three player out of DC he’s got a ton of different offers from some really solid program in that area and throughout the uh the college basketball landscape and he has scheduled a visit to the Kentucky Wildcats apparently he’s going to be taking a visit on June 17th according to on three Kentucky has not made an official offer to aaden Lewis but they are definitely interested in him when going and watching this kid’s game especially during the ebl circuit the most recent one in Indianapolis something that I noticed about him is while he is a combo guard scoring really does seem to be his strong suit I mean the distribution is there the passing is there it’s just during that circuit as opposed to what he was doing in his actual High School his numbers and his tape he was scoring a lot more during the E and they ran him a little bit more off ball at different times and he was extremely effective doing so and actually recently he talked about how he wants to become more of a point he wants to run point in college but whenever you watch his game I really do think that he is a good outside shooter and I think that he is somebody that would work well at shooting guard now is the height and weight a little bit of a concern if you’re playing shooting guard at 6362 170 is what He’s listed at maybe so maybe he wants to play point because of his physical uh his physical uh um I guess limitations I should say from working his way lower into the rotation maybe he wants to play point because he he fits the mold but uh I I think that he truly does score so well I would play him off ball right now he’s got really solid handles he can do a bunch of different things getting into the paint he also something interesting that I noticed about him he is he’s a lefty and he truly does work well with his left hand but this is something you don’t typically see from a lot of different point guards that have solid handles coming out of high school They Don’t Really utilize their offand and this kid seems to be very comfortable with it uh he he he on different occasions will throw up a floater in the lane and utilize his right hand to do so um on both sides of the line whether that be on the left side or or the right side he he will utilize that right hand because it’s just simply the more effective way to knock down the shot he utilizes his right hand a lot when it comes to dribbling and driving he looks perfectly fine and comfortable nothing out of the ordinary which is really positive to see I can he can switch comfortably at this level it makes you assume that he will be pretty dang good at handling the ball at the next level the only critique I would have is while he is good with the ball in his hands he could be a little bit tighter with his handle I think he he’s kind of a little a little too floaty I would say uh and I it’s it’s not necessarily a speed thing I think it’s just to once you get to college and once you handle the ball more you’re you’re going to be more more tight with your handle I think um does he need that not necessarily um but if he wants to be a more effective downhill player I think that with his height and weight he’s going to have to be a little bit more uh a little bit more tight and compact with the way that he he he utilizes the ball in the way that he actually drives to the basket but that’s not to say he can’t dribble the ball he’s actually very very good at it like I just mentioned um and again he’s a good outside shooter this kid is not afraid to take shots he’s good in isolation he’s good coming off ball screens he’s really really good in spot-up situations as well very aggressive and confident when it comes to scoring outside of the Ark um at at different times you know I think there are some separation creation issues but he’s hitting the shots it looks like in the form I don’t have anything to complain about as as a um I I guess slightly undersized guard I would say he is very confident and taking those jumpers and knocking them down he’s got deep range as well um which is something that I think you have to respect if I had to compare him to a player that we’ve seen in college recently I’d compare him to somebody that we saw uh in the transfer portal earlier this offseason who played at Northern Illinois David koite um but this kid obviously is like three or four inches taller uh than than koite is but both of them are lefties both of them really aggressive when it comes to driving shooting scoring overall and then you look at his numbers during the ebl circuit I mean he averaged over 15 a game he really did more scoring than anything uh in this one 3.2 rebound 3. six per game uh assist six assists per game while playing with Team Durant actually on the E circuit and when you look at his college numbers I believe it’s about 14 points he’s averaging over four rebounds and assist per game almost actually five rebounds per contest uh but I I really do think that he’s got a ways to go if he wants to really really show off his point guard abilities I mean he’s a very good player shooting he’s a very good player scoring but if you want to work on your distribution I think he’s got to work on his handle just a little bit if we’re critiquing this is a very good player I I just want to be clear this is a very good player coming out of high school polished fourstar um but if we’re critiquing and I think that he’s trying to improve his game he said as much um you I think he’s going to have to work a little bit more a point just to kind of get that under his belt he said this in a in a recent I believe interview with on three he said I feel like the line between combo guard and point guard are blurred but I definitely want to run the point in college most of the schools recruiting me want me as a point guard and some want me as a point guard who can play off the ball so I I think he’s going to have he’s going to have to at his high school and if he does get on any other circuits he’s going to have to try and work on that a little bit and as far as hit recruitments go his recruitment goes I should say he said I think I’ll cut my list by late June or early July by that time everyone will have had the chance to see me I don’t know when I’ll decide just whenever it’s the time I’m not rushing anything if you want to look at his roster excuse me his uh his um offer sheet I should say Marland Virginia Tech Brown Bryant Florida state Georgia Georgia Tech Louisville Michigan Nebraska Penn State St John Syracuse Villanova Virginia West Virginia Vandy uh a bunch of different teams in here Oregon as well a bunch of different teams kind of in that Northeast area and then also a couple different teams out west but it’s some solid solid schools that could really utilize a player like him again Kentucky has not offered but they are definitely interested a player that I think would work well with Mark Pope just as far as you know aggression and scoring from outside of the arc goes somebody I think that would work well in a uptempo fastpaced system and Kaden Lewis excited to see what he thinks about kuy’s visit again on June 17th Jackson Robinson officially a Kentucky Wildcat big big big news for Kentucky we’re going to be talking a ton about the RO the rotation usage how these different players Robinson Brea all these different wings are going to be uh in this rotation how they’re going to be utilized it’s going to be so much fun I cannot wait to start talking about it with you guys over the next couple of months if you have not subscribed to the YouTube channel or the podcast feed wherever you are tuned in please go ahead and do so it’s a perfect time to join up all right that’s going to do it for today’s episode of Locked on Kentucky you can follow the show on Twitter at lockon UK you can follow me on Twitter at Lance doore and follow the show over on Instagram that is at Kentucky podcast any questions comments concerns leave those in the YouTube comments below hit me on the socials I will see you all tomorrow for another episode of lockon Kentucky hope you guys have a great rest of your day and God bless [Music]
Mark Pope and Kentucky basketball have finally landed Jaxson Robinson.
On today’s episode of Locked On Kentucky, Lance Dawe discusses Jaxson Robinson committing to the Kentucky Wildcats. UK needed a proven volume scorer, and they got one after Robinson withdrew from the NBA Draft. Just how good and Robinson be in his final season of college basketball? Can he be the leading scorer the Kentucky basketball roster needs?
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19 Comments
Sleepers media has been talking a lot of garbage on YouTube about my wildcats
When we win the SEC and go to the final four
In mark popes first year …they will have to apologize
I feel more relieved than anything
I like this team and I think we could easily compete in March this team could go to a final 4 or lose in the 2nd game but this team will not be beat by a 14 seed. If Otega and or Jaxson take it another step up we could really have something I like the pieces I just want another alpha to step up
Kentucky is loaded with experienced 4 stars and not getting any respect. The media will be proven wrong and can suck it.
Who are the people who are saying “he doesn’t fit well?” Lol. He will be an immediate leader who knows and has thrived in this exact offense. I swear people are nuts. Probably Arky fans on here babbling their typical sewage
It was a must get. I was getting scared😅
Who’s in the house tonight?
That is great great news dear friends. Wish I could celebrate with all of you together. My thoughts about Robinson is that he's a great player no doubt, but he will get better, and more dangerous under the guidance of Mark Pope.
BOOM 💥 😺 #chasingnumber9
Butler, Robinson, Brea, Carr, and Williams starting 5….
BOOM! Let's GO C-A-T-S CATS CATS CATS
Let's get it! I'm excited to see who the surprise player(s) will be to go off for us this year, I feel like that's going to happen, maybe by more than a couple of players who feel like they're dismissed as a "role player" or "mid-major". Those pleasant surprises can help a team get to the Final Four. BBN baby!
I'm glad Robinson is now a ky wildcat
Lamont Butler will be the man.
We have one hell of a team and the Pope will I think, go after a reclass burger boy top recruit
We are a top 12 team IMO. #12 ranked team. I think we beat Duke, I’m just thinking ahead.
Great college level players!! A+++ Mark is the MAN!!
Biggest pickup of the offseason, but fans have to be patient. Still a bubble team for the NCAA tourney in year one.
YEAH BABY!!!!!!!!