Jordan Burks made the most of his surprise minutes against Vanderbilt

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jordan-burks-made-most-surprise-minutes-against-vanderbilt — Photo by Christopher Hanewinckel | USA TODAY Sports

In a weird way, injuries can lead to opportunities that just weren’t available before. Jordan Burks experienced that first-hand.

Kentucky came into Tuesday night’s game against Vanderbilt down a couple of key pieces in the rotation. Two starters, point guard DJ Wagner and forward Tre Mitchell, were both sidelined with injuries. John Calipari was forced to dive a bit deeper down his bench than he’s used to, but the move ultimately paid off. Burks made it all worth it.

In the Wildcat’s 109-77 victory over Vanderbilt, the freshman Burks had his best performance yet. The 6-foot-8 guard/wing/forward — whatever you want to call him — made the most of his unexpected playing time. He finished with a career-high 13 points on a perfect 6-6 shooting from the field, even knocking down just his second triple of the season, to go along with five rebounds.

Burks saw the floor for 15 minutes, his most since registering 16 all the way back on Nov. 17.

Wrapping the night in #BBNashville with @Jordanburks123

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— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) February 7, 2024

“How about Jordan?” John Calipari said following the win. “I keep telling everybody about Jordan and look at him. And how about he waited his turn?”

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Burks certainly did wait for his turn. Had it not been for some injuries to teammates ahead of him, it might not have ever come. Burks had only appeared in five SEC games prior to Vandy, clocking a grand total of five combined minutes.

But the always-upbeat rookie never got too down on himself. Calipari has harped all season about his players being ready when their moment comes. Burks grabbed his opportunity and never looked back.

Now, once the likes of Mitchell and Wagner (and even Adou Thiero, who played 21 minutes against Vanderbilt but is dealing with a back injury) do return to full health, Kentucky has another weapon off the bench in Burks who has proven he can come in and make a significant impact.