Tyler Ulis still has love for UK as he gets set for a move to Arkansas
Ulis is set to graduate from UK and move to Arkansas, but he still loves the Bluegrass state.
The Kentucky Wildcats recruiting class and coaching staff was crippled with exodus after exodus following the news that long-time head coach John Calipari was heading to fellow SEC program Arkansas.
The Razorbacks lured in the famed head coach, and the Wildcats have already moved on, hiring BYU head coach and former player Mark Pope as the next coach.
Pope filled out his staff and his roster pretty quickly, adding numerous experienced players from the transfer portal. As for the coaching staff aspect, Kentucky and Pope did lose out on keeping former star guard Tyler Ulis.
During a Wednesday interview with KSR, Ulis confirmed he’s moving to Arkansas once he graduates from UK this summer.
“Yes, I will be joining Cal. I’m actually still around a little because I’m still in school. Everyone’s kind of jumping the gun, but I still have to graduate in the next few months. I have a few more credits left, and then I’ll go from there,” Ulis told Ryan Lemond of Kentucky Sports Radio (via KSR’s Jack Pilgrim).
However, while Ulis will be going with his former coach to a rival, there’s no hatred from him.
“Obviously, it started with Coach Cal, but this is where I played. This is where I kind of made my name,” he said.
Ulis, a 5-foot-9 point guard, had a brief stint in the NBA, playing 133 games, the majority of which were with the Phoenix Suns in his first two seasons in the league.
At Kentucky, he was the 2015-2016 SEC Player of the Year, averaged 17.3 points per game during his second year with the Cats, and also chipped in 7.0 assists per game. He had a slew of accolades and was eventually a second-round pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.
Losing Ulis isn’t ideal, but having him continue to speak highly of the program is telling of how Kentucky goes about its business. He will be missed, but the Cats should be just fine, as Pope and Co. have done a good job rounding out the coaching staff for this coming season.
