Mark Pope's injury update on Lamont Butler isn't going to inspire optimism

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Jan 18, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Lamont Butler (1) celebrates during the first half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Kentucky sure could have used Lamont Butler — on both ends of the floor — against Arkansas on Saturday night.

The Wildcats’ starting point guard missed his second straight game and his fourth of the season. An injured shoulder is what has kept him out of play this week. It doesn’t sound like he’s on the cusp of making a return either.

“I just don’t know. I’m not sure,” Head coach Mark Pope said postgame when asked if Butler’s injury will be long-term. “We are trying to just navigate the space. There’s a lot to it because I’m not going to share because it’s his stuff. We are trying to figure out how to proceed right now. We will see, I would tell you more, but we just really genuinely don’t know yet. We’ll figure out more in the next couple of weeks. I would assume at some point we are going to take another shot at this and see how it goes and we will kind of play it by ear.”

Butler’s presence was desperately missed against Arkansas in what was a massive upset by the Razorbacks. It was John Calipari‘s first game back at Rupp Arena since leaving Leington for Fayetteville last spring. His guys responded well to the tense and rocking crowd booing them two hours before tipoff.

Arkansas scored 89 points against Kentucky, easily the most of any SEC game this season. The second-most? A 74-point outing in a loss to LSU. The Hogs shot 55.2 percent from the field as a team and 13-25 from deep. It was the first time all season Arkansas made more than half of its attempts from beyond the arc.

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But more importantly, former Wildcat guard DJ Wagner had his best game of the season. He dropped 17 (7-13 FG, 2-4 3PT) points and a season-high eight assists with a single turnover. His defensive pressure on Kentucky’s ball handlers slowed the offense down before it could even get rolling. He was fearless attacking the rim and pulling up from deep.

Butler’s on-ball defense would have changed that. His ability to penetrate on the other end of the floor was sorely missed. Jaxson Robinson did a nice job of filling in with 20 points on 6-9 shooting, but Butler’s all-around impact is becoming a necessity for this team.