As Kerr Kriisa awaits Kentucky debut, Lamont Butler shares reminder: "He's a very dangerous player."

Remember that feel-good night last week inside Rupp Arena, the Wildcats scoring 123 points with 21 3-pointers on 42 attempts against Kentucky Wesleyan — ridiculous efficiency and balance across the board? Don’t forget that Kentucky entered that matchup shorthanded and there is more firepower to come.

Kerr Kriisa is dealing with a nagging hamstring issue, one that popped up in practice a few weeks back. Mark Pope joked that the fifth-year senior from Estonia was holding out due to “contract renegotiations” with NIL — again, a joke — before confirming it was a minor “tweak” the team was monitoring.

“It’s not even a strain. It was just a precaution tonight,” he said.

He missed the Blue-White Preseason Event, then the matchup vs. KWC. His status for Tuesday’s exhibition game vs. Minnesota State remains in question — better safe than sorry, if you ask me. No reason to push it in a game that doesn’t count.

When the games do count, though, Kentucky’s starting point guard wants you to know opponents have a problem on their hands in the West Virginia transfer. In fact, the player who averaged 11.0 points and 4.7 assists on 42.4 percent from three has only gotten better since arriving in Lexington this offseason.

Lamont Butler, the two-time reigning Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year, is a big reason for that. As we saw in his debut for the Wildcats, the San Diego State transfer can get after it, racking up 11 points, six rebounds, six assists, six steals and two blocks against KWC. He may just be the best perimeter defender in college basketball — Coach Pope certainly feels he is.

With Butler pushing him in must-see battles at the Joe Craft Center all offseason, he feels Kentucky is getting the best version of Kerr Kriisa in his final season of eligibility.

And that’s a problem for the rest of the college basketball world.

“Probably Kerr,” Butler told KSR of the player he’s seen develop the most since joining the program. “I have to guard Kerr a lot in some form because it’s point guard to point guard. I’ve seen him grow a lot. He’s a tough guard anyway, he’s a good player. He’s been able to continue to grow his game and he’s going to be great for us.”

What does the best version of Kriisa look like? Well, he’s always been a dynamic shot-maker with touch and feel as a facilitator. Clean up the shot selection and turnovers? There’s a lot to love there.

That’s what Butler expects when Kriisa makes his Kentucky debut, the Wildcats adding a “dangerous” piece to a lineup that doesn’t appear to need one at this stage.

“Kerr is a great shooter. You can’t give him no space, but also the pace that he plays with — he cuts hard, he pushes the ball up the floor,” Butler said. “Him off the pick-and-roll is very dangerous because he can either come off and shoot, but he’s also a great passer. He finds guys on the perimeter, he hits the roll well. He’s a very dangerous player.”

Kentucky looks good as is, but Lamont Butler doesn’t want you to forget about Kerr Kriisa.