"Lendeborg told the AP that Kentucky had "started the number with $7 [million] to $9 [million]." "They were pretty much going off on the route like we'll pay him anything to get here," he said, noting the Wildcats' offer was about three times higher than what he took from the Wolverines."
""I am trying not to make a commentary on it," Pope said Thursday ahead of 7-seed Kentucky's first-round game against 10-seed Santa Clara in the NCAA tournament. "This is all part of the distraction that my team is not a part of. We will try and embrace the circus nature of this and count on some responsible media member somewhere to actually kind of dig in and find out or just be responsible reporting.""
Michigan basketball player Yaxel Lendeborg claimed Kentucky offered him $7 million to $9 million to transfer from UAB in 2025, stating the offer was approximately three times higher than his Michigan contract. Kentucky coach Mark Pope responded by suggesting Lendeborg's claim was inaccurate without explicitly denying or confirming the reported offer. Pope characterized the situation as a distraction and criticized modern media reporting standards. Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart reportedly discussed the matter with Pope before his public comments. Lendeborg helped Michigan achieve a 31-3 record and secure a 1-seed in the NCAA tournament, while Kentucky finished 21-13 and received a 7-seed.
#college-basketball-transfer-portal #ncaa-recruiting #kentucky-wildcats #mark-pope #nil-and-player-compensation
Read at ESPN.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]