Kentucky is limited to three frontcourt options: Tre Mitchell, Adou Thiero and Jordan Burks

The Kentucky Wildcats are down to just eight primary scholarship pieces with Ugonna Onyenso (ankle) and Aaron Bradshaw (foot) out due to injury. Joey Hart and Brennan Canada are break-in-case-of-emergency pieces, but John Calipari is planning to keep his rotation at eight until the team returns to full strength.

Of those eight, only three are players the Hall of Fame coach believes are viable frontcourt options, at least for now. He tried to play five-star freshman Justin Edwards at the four in spurts, but admits he didn’t like what he saw.

“I didn’t like Justin at the four,” Calipari said. “I tried it but he didn’t know the position enough. So we became a little discombobulated.”

Edwards finished with a team-high nine rebounds to go with four points and four assists, did some really good things in the 25:54 he was out on the floor. And maybe he’ll find his footing at the four over time — real games won’t be played until November, after all. For now, though, it’s just not a fit Calipari is comfortable with.

And then there were three.

“Now all of a sudden, the three guys — Tre (Mitchell), Jordan (Burks) and Adou (Thiero) are the fours and the fives,” he said.

Thiero started at the four, a clear standout on both ends of the floor. He finished with nine points on 3-6 shooting while adding seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks in 31:43. The 6-7, 217-pound hybrid forward was comfortable attacking the basket and scoring through contact while drawing fouls — he went 3-5 at the line. And then defensively, he was active and aggressive while showing off length and hustle on perimeter close-outs.

Calipari credits the growth to his commitment to the game.

“He is so much better and so much more aggressive,” he said. “So much more committed to the game, which has made him more confident. He made big plays in the moment to rebound balls. He missed one on a free throw, but the other two, he willed himself. … Without either one of our seven-footers, you’re gonna have to have someone come up and do it. Adou was good, played well. … If he rebounds the way he does, he’s gonna be on the court. Just what it is.”

It’s a position Thiero is comfortable playing, one that allows him to capitalize on his physical growth while maintaining his guard skills. It puts everyone involved in a position to succeed.

“It definitely spreads out the floor more. Last year I was playing guard a lot more, but now I’m playing forward because we’ve got a lot more guards,” he told KSR. “But I still get treated like a guard, you know? Get a rebound, I can still push the ball, can still do guard things. It’s just now we can spread the floor more and there are more mismatches on the floor.”

Mitchell started at the five, emerging as the stretch big fans all dreamed he would be when he announced his transfer from West Virginia. The 6-foot-9 forward dropped 20 points on an efficient 7-13 shooting and 4-6 from three while adding six rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block in 34:12.

“Tre made shots,” Calipari said.

And then there’s Burks, who is officially listed as a small forward but currently has to play the backup five role out of necessity. He’s 6-9 and has the size and versatility to compete down low — even if it’s not his ideal spot.

“Jordan is coming in at 6-9 — but he’s not a center,” Calipari added. “It’s driving him crazy that he’s got to be a center. I said, ‘Do you want to play? You’ve got a choice: play this position or not play. I don’t know what to tell you.'”

He would finish with two points, two rebounds and an assist in his debut, earning just shy of 12 minutes on the floor.

Unfortunately for the Wildcats, that’s just the reality of the situation until Onyenso and Bradshaw return to game action. Fortunately, though, they still looked pretty darn good without them.