Kerem Kanter is officially an honorary Kentucky Wildcat
The Big Blue Nation is very familiar with Enes Kanter, even though the former Kentucky Wildcat never got to actually take the floor and play in a real basketball game. Due to NCAA rules (that essentially no longer exist in the NIL era), Kanter was forbidden to suit up for the Wildcats during his lone season in 2011-12 before heading off to the NBA. But even still, he became a fan favorite due to his personality (and memorable Big Blue Madness appearance) and love for the fans.
Roughly 12 years later, a Kanter finally made his appearance for a Kentucky team, albeit in a much different scenario than the BBN would have envisioned. Kerem Kanter, Enes’ younger brother, is the lone non-UK player on the Wildcats’ alumni team for The Basketball Tournament, La Familia. Kerem was a late addition to the roster, but he’s been arguably the most necessary of them all through the two games of TBT.
During Sunday’s 81-64 over The Nawf in Rupp Arena, Kanter led all scorers with 26 points in addition to nine rebounds. He shot 10-12 from the floor and 2-2 from deep as he was La Familia’s go-to source of offense in the first half. 19 of his 26 points came in the first half alone and he capped off his big performance with the “game-winning” three-pointer in the Elam Ending.
This comes just two days after he recorded a game-high 21 points (6-9 FG) in addition to his 12 rebounds during Friday’s win over the 305 Ballers. Kanter is currently averaging 23.5 points and 11 rebounds per game as a member of La Familia while shooting 16-21 (76.2 percent) overall from the field.
Not too shabby for baby bro.
“I’m appreciative of them for accepting me as a teammate, as a brother,” Kanter said of his experience with La Familia. “Me coming here and not going to Kentucky, I just want to be aggressive. Last two games I feel like we’ve had an advantage with our size, we wanted to pound the ball inside and we’ve been successful in doing that. We have so many different guys who can do so many different things. One day it could be in the paint, other day it could be dribble-drive, threes, we’re a versatile team.”
In short, Kanter has been La Familia’s best player two games into this winner-takes-all, $1 million grand prize tournament — not even close. He was even kind enough to join our Rapid Reaction after Sunday’s win.
The Big Blue Nation has quickly come to love what Kanter brings to the hardwood. He’s a physical load in the paint and nearly impossible to move around once he’s in position. At 6-foot-10, he can score right over the top of most defenders and does so with either hand. His ability to stretch the floor makes him a point guard’s dream, too.
“We would have had some fun if he was playing with me (at Kentucky),” Head coach Tyler Ulis joked.
In the postgame press conference, Kanter — who finished his college career at Xavier in 2018 — was asked what kind of player he would have been had he played at Kentucky for head coach John Calipari. He gave a response that will have the BBN feeling nostalgic and asking “what could have been” type questions regarding Enes.
“That’s a great question. Another great question is what kind of player my brother would have been,” Kanter responded. “That (Kentucky) team went to the Final Four, ended up losing to UConn. I grew up a Kentucky fan just watching him, Brandon Knight, Terrence Jones, and those guys going to a Final Four. I guess you gotta ask that question to Coach Cal.”
Surrounded by a roster that is all Kentucky players and a coaching staff that is mostly Kentucky players, Kanter doesn’t feel like the odd man out. His connection through Enes has helped, but his new teammates and the support from the fans have him feeling like an honorary Wildcat.
“Unfortunately my brother didn’t get to play, I didn’t get to play here,” Kanter said. “But I still appreciate all the fans who embrace me like I’m one of them.“
Kanter and La Familia will return to Rupp Arena on Tuesday to take on Herd That with a shot at the quarterfinals on the line. Tipoff is set for 9:00 p.m. EST. Maybe Enes will show up to join the BBN and cheer on the ‘Cats.
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