Kentucky star Reed Sheppard declares for the NBA Draft

Reed Sheppard‘s time as a Kentucky Wildcat has come to a close, the 2024 Wayman Tisdale National Freshman of the Year officially taking his talents to the NBA.

Considered a consensus top-10 pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, Sheppard is turning down the opportunity to be the face of a new era of Kentucky basketball under first-year head coach Mark Pope — his father Jeff’s college roommate and fellow 1996 national champion.

Pope acknowledged Sheppard needed to follow his heart when deciding his future plans, understanding the opportunity to be a lottery pick is a once-in-a-lifetime situation.

“That is not something to be taken lightly. It’s really extraordinary,” Pope said Monday. “So Reed, the way he’s going to be successful in his future is if he really searches inside himself and finds out where his heart is pulling him. In all honesty, Jeff, Stacey and Reed are very spiritual people. It’s where God is calling him and that’s just the truth.”

That doesn’t mean he wasn’t praying things went a certain way for Sheppard.

“I told Jeff, I’m spending a lot of time praying that God will call him back to Kentucky,” he said. “We’ll see how that goes.”

After thinking things over, Sheppard decided it’s his time to follow his dreams as a pro and enter the draft, forgoing his remaining eligibility and leaving college basketball behind for good.

“I will be entering my name into the NBA Draft today,” Sheppard said Thursday. “BBN, you have been with me from day one, faithful and passionate. I’m asking you to go with me on this journey, I’m looking forward to taking you with me. I’ll represent you with all of the characteristics that make us Kentuckians: passion, humility, perseverance, sacrifice and joy. And one day, I’ll return to family, to friends, to Kentucky, my home. I love you, BBN. Thank you.”

Thank you💙🙏 pic.twitter.com/k6Np3GyYr2

— reed sheppard (@reed_sheppard) April 18, 2024

He finishes his career averaging 12.5 points, 4.5 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game, shooting 53.6% from the floor and 51.1% from three, good for best in Kentucky basketball history. Seeing action in all 33 games for UK with five starts, Sheppard was the only player in the country to rack up 145 assists, 80 steals and 75 3-pointers. He’s also just the second player in school history to have 80 or more steals in a single season. The London, KY native finished with 21 games scoring in double-figures, including seven with 20 or more. He led UK in scoring seven times, assists in 18 games, steals in 25 games and blocks four times.

Now, the No. 7 available prospect in ESPN’s draft rankings will be giving the NBA a shot — and certainly making Kentucky proud.