Mark Pope explains how he juggles transfer portal during NCAA Tournament run

The NCAA transfer portal officially opened on Monday with over 700 players jumping in to explore their options on the very first day. That’s more than double last year’s first-day total, according to Travis Branham of 247Sports, with 291 in 2024.

That complicates things for Kentucky, along with the other 15 teams still dancing this weekend — and then the four advancing from there, obviously. As the Wildcats are game planning for a third matchup against Tennessee with a spot in the Elite Eight on the line, everyone else is getting a head start on the portal. That’s one potential benefit of losing in the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament (or not making the Big Dance at all), right?

Not exactly.

Sure, the staff is busy preparing for the Volunteers, but don’t mistake that for a lack of attention on the portal. They’re keeping a close eye on both, joining the mad rush of contacting those already in while monitoring who could be next.

“We’re getting all the reporting that everybody’s getting in terms of who’s in the portal, who’s getting in the portal, who’s leaning that way,” Mark Pope said during his call-in show Monday night. “While our communication with those people that are rumored to be entering the portal is limited, we’ve been doing a ton of planning.”

Matt Santoro — the team’s assistant video coordinator by title, but lead expert on cut-ups, scouting and evaluation — has done endless research on all of Kentucky’s potential options this offseason. As new names jump into the portal, they’re added to the Wildcats’ list to determine the fit.

It’s a minute-by-minute ordeal — by the time you’re done reading this, another couple names have likely been thrown into the mix.

“Matt Santoro is organizing it — the great Matt Santoro is kind of our lead on organizing all that information. We have a dozen massive Excel spreadsheets that we’re updating literally minute by minute,” Pope continued. “And with coaching changes, we’ve been able to talk to some kids in the portal, and we’ve gotten to talk to some kids that are entering the portal as we speak.”

It adds to the chaos trying to prepare for Tennessee while also focusing on next year’s roster, but don’t underestimate the advantage that comes with Kentucky still dancing in Indianapolis: more eyes on the former portal additions on this current roster playing the best basketball of their careers.

The greater the success of this bunch, the greater the interest for this upcoming portal cycle. If all goes as planned, they’ll be able to hand-pick the best of the best when the time comes to pull the trigger on some commitments.

“Trying to keep all that organized is a huge task, but it’s really exciting because there are incredibly talented players,” Pope said. “I think guys have seen the massive success that our transfers have had this year, and I expect that we’re going to have great success recruiting the portal.”

Who wouldn’t want to be a part of this right now? We’re about to find out just what kind of rewards Pope’s historic first season in Lexington will bring for the future.