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- [00:00]
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Mark Pope
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- [02:01]
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Mark Pope
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- [02:32]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Welcome back Kentucky Sports Radio. Happy to be joined by Mark Pope. Mark, great to see you.
- [02:37]
Mark Pope
I'm happy to be here. Man.
- [02:38]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
I like that blue sweatsuit you got going there.
- [02:41]
Mark Pope
Thank you.
- [02:42]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Yeah, thank you. UK gear, I think, has improved in the last year or two. I don't know if you have anything to do with it or not, but I like it, man.
- [02:48]
Mark Pope
When I was here 30 years ago, we had all of it going on, too. It was controversial at the time with the denim and then with the, like,
- [02:54]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
hey, look at this right here. Look at these. Yeah, Yeah, I got the denim Converse on for you. Yeah, yeah.
- [03:01]
Mark Pope
I mean, I think we've been setting the. The stand for a long time.
- [03:04]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Well, let's talk.
- [03:05]
Moto Casino Advertiser
I.
- [03:05]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
We only have you for a little while, so I actually want to get substantive basketball questions, if you're good with that, because I know people would like to hear it. Let's talk about the team coming up this year. You've got 14 players, a lot of whom we don't know how our workouts going. And what do you think of the group you've seen so far? I know a couple are injured.
- [03:24]
Mark Pope
I like our. I like our gym. Our gym feels good. You know, we set out with some very clear intentions as we work through the pool portal, trying to put this particular team together. And. And I think I like where we are. I think we have a ton of creator vibe, and we're seeing that on the practice floor. We got a ton of length, a ton of shooting at some in some really fun, different levels. And I think. I think we have some, you know, when we get healthy, this center spot's going to be a real strength for us. So it's a good group. There's unbelievable juice on the practice floor, as there always should be in the summer. But this group is. Is going to be special and. And it's been fun, man. Every day is a joy to walk into that gym.
- [04:05]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Is it. Was there anything you saw that maybe didn't work last year with the team, that when you put this roster together, you said, I want to make sure I get that?
- [04:14]
Mark Pope
Well, yes. I mean, this whole. And we've talked about it a lot publicly over the last couple of months, but this whole vibe of. Of having more creators on the floor is really important us. And we could get deep, deep into the weeds on that, where we have more guys that are capable of actually creating shots for themselves and creating shots for teammates that are causing power Plays on the floor. So power play is just a term we use from hockey. We stole it from hockey, where anytime that you can earn a second defender and you earn the rest of your team a 4 on 3 or a 3 on 2, or sometimes a 4 on 2 if you're really good, we like to work out that space, and we didn't have as much of that last year as we traditionally do. You know, Jalen was such a massive piece of our organization, and. And. And. And so we. We. We didn't have that healthy. We suffered a little bit through that our first year. And so we came in with two major priorities. One, Malachi Moreno is a massively important piece of what we're doing, because did
- [05:16]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
you ever think that he was going to lose, you were going to lose him?
- [05:18]
Mark Pope
Well, you never know for sure. Malachi's heart is in Kentucky. He loves this place. I think he's got a lot of faith in our staff. He's got a lot of passion about what we. But the NBA poll is real. Yeah, it is a real thing.
- [05:31]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
But you never thought you were gonna lose him to another college.
- [05:34]
Mark Pope
No. Listen, anything can happen in the portal, as we've seen, you know, day after day after day. It's such a dynamic place. But I know Malachi's heart. I know what he cares about. Everybody in Kentucky knows how much he cares about this place. So he was a huge point of emphasis, and then this creator side of the ball was such a huge point of emphasis, and so we went really hard after those two spaces then, and then built in the rest of the
- [05:57]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
roster during the portal period. Like, it's hard to know sometimes who you guys are going after and who you aren't. I mean, you're kind of. You. You're kind of beholden to what the information is that out there, you had different guys in. How important was it because of some of the stuff that maybe happened earlier to close on Milan? Did you feel like that was a huge finishing piece?
- [06:21]
Mark Pope
Well, yeah. So two things. One, it's unfortunate that you go through this process, and there's so many reasons why we need to be private. One, it's rules that we have to be private. But two, there's a lot of times when we're dealing with players who want to keep things private, or, you know, we're dealing with complicated negotiations, so we do go through quietly, and so it leaves a lot of people having to just postulate. And so you end up with a lot of complicated information out there that might be far off the Mark. But it's just everybody doing the best.
- [06:52]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
But is there anything to do about that at a place like Kentucky where people want to know information?
- [06:58]
Mark Pope
Yeah, I think you just ride through it.
- [07:00]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
You do.
- [07:01]
Mark Pope
So, you know, there are a couple times this year where, where news broke from. You know, there's everybody, as we all live in Kentucky is the greatest place in the world, and everybody wants to know. And so, you know, you might be in a really sensitive moment in a negotiation and news breaks where it kind of makes a family upset because it's gone public. That'd be one of a million examples of how we kind of are trying to like, thread the needle as we go through this.
- [07:29]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Does it upset you? Because I think that probably happens.
- [07:32]
Mark Pope
It doesn't upset me at all. It's just, it's all part of the business, guys. It's part of the deal.
- [07:37]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Yeah.
- [07:38]
Mark Pope
And so our job is to navigate these spaces the best we possibly can. And, but also do it here, where everybody cares more than they care everywhere else. And so that's a thread like, like doing both of those things at the same time is our job. That's what we do. And, and so, so there was a. You know, I think we felt a lot different in the office than maybe people felt publicly because I think from the very get go, we knew exactly what we were trying to chase and how we were trying to get there. I do think Milan is a really important piece for us. Not because he was early or late, but because he fits me. He fits what I care about. He fits how we play. He's a veteran, veteran guy.
- [08:17]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
I always thought. I mean, he looks. Seems like if you were to draw up a mark Pope.
- [08:21]
Mark Pope
Yeah.
- [08:22]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Stretch, three, four. However you use him, it would be him, wouldn't it?
- [08:25]
Mark Pope
Yeah, he's, he's, he's there and you know, he's, he's. And so he was a, he's a very important piece of this puzzle. He happened to come later in the story. But the nice thing was the, one of the reasons why he came was because all the other pieces that we had put in place, they fit him so well also. And so I think we had a really nice dynamic where these guys are going to be able to play off each other. And I'm excited about it so that, you know, I think your original question was, you know, early on with some of the stuff that happened, did it make it so important? Late. It was important. He was an important piece of the puzzle. Whether it was early or late, there's no doubt about it just like Zoom is such an important piece and Alex is an important piece and Mason Williams is an important piece and Justin, like, I hear that he's really important.
- [09:09]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
I don't want to say been better than you thought, but maybe better than we as fans thought early on. Is that true?
- [09:14]
Mark Pope
Yeah, he's going to. He's got a Mason. Yeah, Mason has got to grow for sure. But he's coming in with a college ready body and he is a voracious worker. He's a guy. You know, I've talked about this publicly a lot, about how he just is relentless in the gym. He's shooting the ball at elite level. He's one of those guys right now as a young player that I'm trying to get him to stop deferring and actually go hunt possessions. He's a great playmaker. He's got to learn how to play us. He's got to learn all the freshman stuff. But he's. I'm telling you what I have high hopes for, for him and his trajectory. I think he's got a chance to be a very good player.
- [09:48]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
So you, I mean, when you, when you first came here, you and I sat down and you said something to me that I really stuck with me. You said, look, I know you have to do your job and if things don't go like they should, you need to go on the, go on there and blast me. That's your job. It's not BBN if you don't. I remember telling you at the time. That's easy to say in the abstract. What's it like when it happens two years later? You felt at times, I'm sure, the pressure of Kentucky media. Do you feel the same way two years later?
- [10:24]
Mark Pope
100%. Like, one thing, guys, is like, I know exactly what Kentucky is. I mean, I'm probably right now the world's expert on Kentucky basketball. I know exactly what it is and, and I'm learning how to navigate the challenge better and better every single day, as we all are. But our standard is never going to change. It's what's make this place great. And the way we chase it is never going to change. And our care is never going to change. And so it's all part of the gig like it is every single day. It's all part of the gig. And it's the gig that I want more than any other gig in the world. It's awesome.
- [11:00]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Do you, last year, before the season started, you were very excited about that team. I think you said that you Were sitting on a Ferrari. Was your. Was your quote? Obviously, the Jalen Lowe injury changes a lot. Do you look back and say I was overestimating the team or it just really didn't have a chance after Low got hurt. Like, how do you look at when you evaluate yourself, last year's thing?
- [11:26]
Mark Pope
No, I feel the same way about the rosters I did before the season. We just didn't get to see it. You know, it's just a hard. That's. Listen, I wish there was a better answer than that, but we just didn't get to see it. You know, we. You know, you don't get. You don't get Jalen, really. At the very beginning, we kind of had an unbelievable lead guard scenario like we do this year. We had that to start with a couple other players that once Jalen came, they left. So we had great depth there. I felt like at the 5, I thought we had unbelievable depth to really go. And we just never got to see the team. You know, I say this all the time. We got to see him for 17 minutes in the second half against St. John's and even in that scenario, you're seeing guys that never practiced together, that never got to develop. And you think about J. I think about J. Lo and J.Q.
- [12:16]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
a lot.
- [12:18]
Mark Pope
They changed the way our team could function on the floor. And so the upside with those guys was so elite. You think about jq he played four games all season, and he gets drafted, you know, solidly in the first round. That's the type of talent that he brings to the table. We just unfortunately didn't get to see it last year.
- [12:37]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
So is that in your mind? You say, look, the plan was good, the roster build was good. It just. We had injuries. Is that how you see it?
- [12:44]
Mark Pope
Yeah. I mean, there's always things you could do better, but, man, I would have loved to take that thing for a ride, for sure. Like, I like the way it was built. I like the way it's put together. I wish that Kaden had stayed because that would have given us some real, like, backup function. And we thought that was going to work, and it just didn't. So there, you know, there's a couple pieces that I wish had had hung in there with us, but if you gave me that group healthy and said, hey, run it back, I mean, let's go, man. Let's go figure this out. Because you would do it again. Oh, 100%.
- [13:12]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Do you. When I was watching the team, and this actually goes back to the first year, some one of the things I've noticed about you, you don't tend to play the guys huge amounts of minutes, any of the guys. I will say one of the things I've always thought is, look, there's a big drop sometimes between the ones and the twos, and oftentimes we might get a lead and then the subs happened and then it's back tied again. Is that just. Is that your kind of plan going forward? Was it. Is it unique to those two teams?
- [13:42]
Mark Pope
Well, it's. It changes. So there's so many variables that go into it. I think my instinct normally is to kind of like, let's go lead out in the energy part of the game and win that part of the game. I think part of, you know, our optimism going into last season was we felt like we come wave after wave after wave, and we never got a chance to do that because we never had that group. And so I do think that there's a ton of variables that come into making those decisions, but I do think there's a place actually to play guys more of a solid rotation. And I think there's a time and place to do that. And, and so you do it. Striking that right balance is important.
- [14:24]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
You do do it in the postseason often.
- [14:26]
Mark Pope
Well, developing guys is really important. Yeah, right. And you saw that. You know, a great example is Colin Chandler. Colin Chandler was the seventh most improved player in all of college basketball last season. That doesn't happen by accident. You have to kind of nurse guys and grow guys. You, you know, Jasper Johnson is a player that has tremendous upside and we, we needed him and we kept, you know, trying to find the right situation for him and he's going to be a great player and, and, and some of that's going to come from those developmental minutes. You know, you look at Ortega always rise and like us being able to continually put him in new situations, that's how guys grow. Malachi Moreno, you know, early on in the season, force feeding him some minutes helped him grow into the guy that actually had to carry the load for so much last season. You kind of go down the list. So there's a MA for us. We are developers of players. I think it's one of the things we do better than anybody else in the country is we help our guys get better. I'm really proud of the fact that Amari came in here as a non draft board guy, that Kobe came in here as a non draft board guy, that Ortega came here as a non. These are not guys that were predestined to be drafted players. JQ was, but those other three weren't. And the fact that those guys came here and we were able to develop them to where and they develop themselves. It's their hard work that does it. To earn themselves a chance to go play at the next level is really important to us. And I think part of the reason why we, you know, part of our plan, part of this process is bringing players in and helping them grow and get better. And I think it's something our staff is a lead at, so that comes into play, too. But like I said, there's a thousand variables that goes into those decisions. And, uh. And that's certainly one of them.
- [16:07]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
I've got. I asked fans for questions that they wanted answers to. You have to go for practice. I love.
- [16:13]
Mark Pope
I love the fans questions.
- [16:14]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
All right, so these. But we got to go quick if
- [16:16]
Mark Pope
we're going to get them.
- [16:17]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Are you going to hire another assistant and win?
- [16:21]
Mark Pope
The answer is most likely yes and.
- [16:24]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
But potentially no.
- [16:25]
Mark Pope
I can't tell you when. This is what I can tell you. I love the way that our staff is working right now. So there's been a change in NCAA right now in terms of staff. So right now I get Will Corman and I get Nick Robinson and I get Matt Santoro on the court. All staff members are allowed to be on the court right now. I like the way we feel as a staff. I'm engaged in conversations about staff every day. Even when our staff is full, I'm still talking and talking to people and kind of seeing where it goes. If we hire someone, it's going to be the right person that's going to be exactly the right fit for what we do. But we're working at a really high level right now.
- [17:04]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
So no Jamal CR Offered.
- [17:06]
Mark Pope
Jamal is. Is still got two years left on his NBC contract.
- [17:09]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Okay.
- [17:10]
Mark Pope
I'm a good friends with Jamal. We've been friends for a long time. There might be a time where it's good for him to jump in coaching. It's something that he would like to do. He's one of those guys that's cut from a little bit of a similar cloth. Like Mo Williams is where, you know, Mo was. It's hard to run an AU program. And he. And there's a lot of guys that. That fund an AU program. Mo was running an AU program. Jamal is running and coaching an AU program. And when you find guys like that, with their background, he could have a great future in college. He could have a. You know, he could. He could go Get a job, baby. In the right. In the exact right space as a, as a head coach in the NBA maybe. But I think there's a good chance coaching is in his future. But he's, he's got a sweet deal right now and he's, he's got a couple years left.
- [17:57]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
I've had a lot of people ask me why no father son camps, etc. This summer.
- [18:02]
Mark Pope
Yeah. So we're working through so many dynamics. We thought we would take a pause on those this summer and just reevaluate with everything that's changing. There is a real place for those camps. I love them actually. Like, I actually like the, the daddy daughter camp even better than the father and son.
- [18:19]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
But you're not doing any of them.
- [18:20]
Mark Pope
We're not doing either of those this year. And we're going to kind of just take a pause and reevaluate.
- [18:24]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Reevaluate, meaning you think they'll come back?
- [18:26]
Mark Pope
I could see us going huge into camps. I could see us, you know, walking away from them. I'm not sure where the future is going to go with that, but it's something we're thinking about.
- [18:37]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Why no summer trip?
- [18:39]
Mark Pope
So we had, we had kind of worked through several dynamics we actually have there and we're still under consideration for something that we have to get some waivers for to do. But it's again, there's been some rule changes. You know, the best thing about these overseas Trips is the 10 days of practice. The 10 days of practice are game changers. But the NCAA, rightfully so and I hope they keep going this direction. They took our four hour limitation on the court and they extended it. They doubled it now, so we have much more time on the court. It makes those 10 days of practice a little bit less of a boost. There's also a cost. There's a financial cost and there's a time cost and there's an energy cost to go out on the trip. So if we find the exact right one, we thought we've had something a couple times so you still could. Well, and I can't really go into detail. There's actually something we'd have to need some waivers for right now that we're pushing on. Right now we're talking to NCAA about see if we get a waiver out of program, but we just can't. You know, I, I'm not allowed to talk about.
- [19:37]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Are you going to get another player?
- [19:39]
Mark Pope
Maybe we're still actively. I love my roster right now, but if we find the right piece at the Right. Time. And that could look like a lot of different things. It could be a developmental piece. It could be a. It could be a depth piece. It could be. There's. There's a lot of different slices where we've gone. If we find the right person, we could. But I like the roster a lot right now. I think we go to battle.
- [20:01]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
All right, they're telling me you have to go. We're. We went a long segment here. Could he stay till 11:10?
- [20:07]
Mark Pope
Yeah, let's do it. Come on. Let's say we can do it.
- [20:08]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
All right, so we're going to take. This is going to be an extended break, but then we will come back at the top of the hour and be able to have Mark. We'll be right back. Ksr.
- [20:15]
Mark Pope
Don't make it too extended.
- [20:17]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Welcome back, techie Sports Radio. Have a ton of people writing in. Let me give you. We got a minute here before I have to take another break. Zoom. Diallo. Alex Wilkins. What's that back quarter gonna be, man?
- [20:26]
Mark Pope
If you guys could have heard what the conversation was in this room during
- [20:30]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
the break, it was great. I wish we could have that conversation on the air.
- [20:34]
Mark Pope
There's rules, guys.
- [20:35]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
There's rules.
- [20:36]
Moto Casino Advertiser
There's rules.
- [20:36]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
Waivers. We got waivers.
- [20:37]
Mark Pope
Hey, before we get to have. Kidding. How is our guy Ryan doing?
- [20:40]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
He. First of all, I'm glad you asked. He is doing much better. He had a really difficult time. I mean, like in the hospital for 10 days at 1 point looked tough. And, and, and he. But he's doing much better. He's on vacation right now. So he's okay. He's come back to the show.
- [20:58]
Mark Pope
Okay, good, good.
- [20:59]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
It's good to hear because I know you care about him a lot.
- [21:01]
Mark Pope
Okay, hit me with questions.
- [21:03]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Zoom. Real quick.
- [21:03]
SpinQuest Advertiser
Zoom.
- [21:04]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
And Alex Wilkins. What's that back court going to be like?
- [21:05]
Mark Pope
It's gonna be super fun, man.
- [21:07]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
You know, that's the recruiter.
- [21:09]
Mark Pope
They're both. They're both one. Oh, creators. And. And they're very different in style of play. They're going to be really fun.
- [21:16]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Yeah. Do you think together is the shooting enough at the guard position with those two?
- [21:22]
Mark Pope
Yeah. So Alex right now shoots 79% on it. We do 100. We do a series of 100 threes a day. And on this in the. We're just, you know, right close to that four. Four week mark. He's 79%.
- [21:32]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
That's pretty good.
- [21:33]
Mark Pope
He can shoot it, guys.
- [21:34]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
All right, we're going to do five minutes with you when we return, and then let you go to let you go to practice. We will take a break and be right back. KSR Looking for a mortgage bank to
- [21:42]
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- [22:40]
Mark Pope
this is Kentucky Sports Radio, presented by Stockton Mortgage and the Kentucky Office of Highway Safety Safe Summer Driving Tour. Now here's Matt Jones.
- [22:49]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
All right, I got five more minutes, so let's go. This is the most important question from the text machine to Mark Pope. Mark, I love you. What bothers me is this.
- [22:58]
Mark Pope
Let's just stop right there.
- [22:59]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
No, let's just go with the I love you. You have the ability to grow a full head of hair. And those of us who are bald want to know why you waste the ability to grow a full head of hair by shaving your head.
- [23:11]
Mark Pope
So this is so. You know, I do believe that we have the capacity to make a limited amount of great decisions. And so like I shave my head because it's a decision off the table. And the thing is with this beard, guys, are you keeping. No one told me that it's less decision making. I don't have to shave every day.
- [23:27]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Are you keeping it?
- [23:28]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
Come on.
- [23:28]
Mark Pope
I don't know if I'm keeping it. So. So there's been a lot of consternation about it.
- [23:33]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
No dark Pope.
- [23:34]
Mark Pope
The thing is, well, I don't know what dark Pope is. I hope it's get it done Pope, but I like it today and we'll see how it is tomorrow.
- [23:44]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
I'm not making any promises. Guys, it looks good.
- [23:46]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
You and the team are heading to Vegas this week. Can you reveal a little bit of what's on the schedule? What you all plan on doing there?
- [23:52]
Mark Pope
Yeah, so we're going to have early morning practices. We're going to get after it really, really hard at a great facility. It's going to be a great venue. We're going to connect with all of our guys. One of the great things about summer league is not just all of our guys playing in summer league, but all the NBA vets come back. And so we did a huge thing there last year. We're doing it again this year. And just connecting our current guys with those former players is really special for us. And there's also, they've also moved, you know, recruiting venues there so we'll be able to do recruiting at the same time. It's a, it's a catch all. It's really important for our guys to get the work done in a different gym, to grow their relationships together and to kind of see and feel what their future holds. This connection between Kentucky and, and the NBA is like no other. And, and this makes a lot of sense for us.
- [24:44]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
You had a picture you posted after you got Milan where you were on the beach and you had a two cards and they said Jack and King on it. People have spent a month and a half trying to figure out what was the Jack and King. Can you tell us what the Jack and King.
- [24:59]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
I didn't sleep for two days. We were spec trying to figure it out.
- [25:02]
Mark Pope
So, you know, it's fun. And you know, I was an English major here at Kentucky and I learned this. Okay. When an author puts something out there, it's now not their own.
- [25:11]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Oh, okay.
- [25:13]
Mark Pope
It's owned by the reader. And so I can tell you it was incredibly intentional in the sense of like it was a last second idea. And so we thought it would be fun to put out and it's going to be way more meaningful as people interpret it the way they want. This, this, this fan base is bbn, man, which I'm a member of, is is there's no more fun fan base to interact with. And that's the whole, that's the whole deal.
- [25:41]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
Did you eat all that fruit? That was so much.
- [25:42]
Mark Pope
But there is a reason. There is a reason. Actually the Pope girls are setting up the shot and they, they got a little carried away.
- [25:50]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
They're like, dad, let's do this. Put a lot of fruit there.
- [25:52]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
So good.
- [25:53]
Mark Pope
It was fun.
- [25:54]
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Kentucky Sports Radio Host
You know, your girl's very active on social media. Do you ever say, hey, down a notch? Or are you like go?
- [26:01]
Stockton Mortgage Advertiser
Nope.
- [26:02]
Mark Pope
I'm like, go girls. Listen, my girls sacrifice and and care both maybe as much as any member of BBN and probably more. And this is very personal to them and they are very funny and they, they love this whole thing and they won't listen to me if I tell them anything anyway. So it's just, it's a beautiful. Like I'm telling you. So again, congratulations on your daughter.
- [26:29]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
I got an Avery copied off of me.
- [26:31]
Mark Pope
There is nothing in the world better than being a dad to daughters. Man, it is the best. And so I just watch these girls go. And sometimes I hold my breath, but they do what they do.
- [26:40]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Last thing and then, because I know you gotta go. What is your biggest. Looking back at the two years that are here, what's your biggest thing that makes you happy? And then what's your biggest regret or thing you would change about the last two years? And. And then what do you think is most important besides winning for you to alter do going forward?
- [27:00]
Mark Pope
That's. Okay. Let's take those one at a time.
- [27:02]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Okay.
- [27:03]
Mark Pope
First, first one was what do I wish I would have changed?
- [27:06]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Yeah, what would you wish you have changed in the first two years?
- [27:08]
Mark Pope
So in terms of regrets. So I don't live in any regrets. I think every experience that we have is actually growing us and preparing us for the future that we're chasing. And so I don't have any regrets. Everything we've. Listen, we've accomplished so much, we've grown so much, we're learning so much. We are in the process of getting to our ultimate destination. The process is messy. Growing is messy. Like it's setbacks. It's one step forward, two back, three steps forward. It's the beauty of it. And. Oh, that's a big one.
- [27:40]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
You need to take it and come back.
- [27:41]
Mark Pope
I'm okay. I'm gonna call him right back.
- [27:42]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Okay.
- [27:45]
Mark Pope
And so, and so there's nothing like this is everybody's journey.
- [27:49]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
But what would you change regret?
- [27:51]
Mark Pope
Well, you know, I'm gonna go to the low hanging fruit. I'd like to stay healthy. I would like to stay healthy.
- [27:55]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Is there anything you can do for that? Like, is there anything.
- [27:58]
Mark Pope
This is a great question. So we've actually done, you know, we're data driven like crazy. I drive everybody in our office crazy. And so we've dug hard into this. What's interesting is we're not. We're having less soft tissue injury than any other program. We've just had these random traumatic acute injuries like Jackson breaking his finger caught in a jersey. It's just like this random thing. We had two Point guards in a row that dove on the floor and stretched out and had labrum deals. We've had two Jones fractures, which is just. There's not like we do blood work and nutrition. Those are things that just, it just happened. It's part of life. Sometimes things happen. And so what you do is you use them to make you better and stronger and grow more and prepare you for the next stage. And those challenges have made us so much better as coaches have so much broader vision. They're making our players better, stronger people. And the end result is going to be the end result. We're going to get where we want to go.
- [28:52]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
And then finally, what would you like to see? What changes are you kind of making going forward?
- [28:58]
Mark Pope
Well, we have, and we've talked about it like I'm beating this drum, man. Creators, creators. Creators. Size, size, size, rent protection, decision making at the five spot, really with some depth and, and then length decision making and shooting at the wings. And I think we have it like we have the versatility where we're going to be a little bit every year as we put together these rosters. You can't completely immunize yourself from misfortune during the course of the season, but we're, we're doing a, we've got to a pretty masterful space right now where I feel like as good as it can be done, we've put together a roster right now that we're excited about coaching and that has some protection for based on our versatility.
- [29:38]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
My mom will kill me if I don't ask you. Is Trent Noah going to step up this year?
- [29:41]
Mark Pope
Trent Noah, man, he's been the best player on our roster in the first four weeks of camp. He tweaked a hamstring yesterday, which is a, which is a nothing. But he's, he's, he's actually, believe us or not, he's leading us, leading us in defensive impact metric right now on this roster.
- [29:57]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Yes, he is.
- [29:58]
Mark Pope
And the thing is there's. We talk about growing players. Trent is in his third year here, right. He is completely devoted and dedicated to Kentucky basketball and getting better and we'll see the fruits of that growth. Like it's players like Trent Noah and you watch them rise up that you build a relationship over the years. He's going to be really special this year. I'm super proud of him. So he is going to have an impact on this roster for sure.
- [30:22]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Mark, thank you very much for coming in here. We do appreciate it. You said you stayed a little longer for us and hope we can talk to you more as we get closer to the year.
- [30:31]
Mark Pope
There is never been a better time to be a Kentucky basketball fan, man. Like, it's on guys like this because this is a journey we're going through. Like, we've all had these incredible highs, and we had these really, really frustrating things all growing towards the goal, which, you know, we're incredibly focused on nine. And we're going to get there. We're going to find a way to get there. This journey, like, when we write the book on this, guys, it's going to be epic. Like, it just is the best. And. And so I'm glad we're all riding it together. Thanks.
- [31:01]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Thank you, Mark. Go take that call. Appreciate Mark Pope. Loving the beard and. And everything. Thank you all very much. All right. Appreciate it. See you later. We will. Well, I'll tell you what. We'll stay here for a minute. Let him go. Thank you, by the way, for.
- [31:15]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
Yeah.
- [31:15]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Yes. Appreciate it. Have a safe trip. Yes. So there you go.
- [31:18]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
That was fun.
- [31:19]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
That was very nice of him to
- [31:20]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
stick around, especially during a long break.
- [31:21]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
It was a long break.
- [31:22]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
A lot of people in the past, coaches, other people, even people that aren't
- [31:25]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
important, would not sit through a break. Cal specifically said, I'll do as long an interview as you want, but there will be no break. And, Shannon, there's nothing you and I can do about the break. The heartbreak comes for everyone.
- [31:38]
Mark Pope
It doesn't matter who you are.
- [31:39]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
Doesn't matter who you are. And he sat through there, and he's right. The first break, that would have been a nice one to be able to have over the air.
- [31:45]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
It's a good conversation.
- [31:46]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
But I'm also glad, like, we got to talk, you know, during the break about just in general, like, the. The last year, you know, I think he was very honest about some of that, and it's good to hear him say he still thinks that there should be criticism when it's deserved. I'm glad to hear that. Reaffirmed.
- [32:05]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
Completely understands the fan base and what he signed up for. You love hearing that.
- [32:08]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
He also understands, like, we need to be good this year, and he's excited about the team. You can tell that he should be,
- [32:14]
Kentucky Sports Radio Co-host
but you can feel it, that it's. That's genuine how excited he is about this.
- [32:18]
Kentucky Sports Radio Host
You can just tell that's how he feels. All right.
- [32:20]
Mark Pope
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