Kentucky Basketball: Does the addition of Tre Mitchell move the needle?

The college basketball offseason has been a whirlwind of activity. Fans that take a week off from paying attention risk falling behind, as the new transfer rules have completely changed the way in which head coaches build and maintain their rosters. Kentucky Basketbaqll, who for years has been one of the most fascinating offseason teams, struck again this week with the signing of West Virginia forward Tre Mitchell.

Thanks to the high turnover level of its roster due to many one-and-dones, Kentucky has traditionally been one of the most difficult teams to rank in the offseason. This upcoming season promises to be no different. Nearly the entire Wildcat roster is different, with Antonio Reeves the only notable player returning from a team that reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament before bowing out to Markquis Nowell and Kansas State.

Former National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe (also a West Virginia transfer) is gone to the Indiana Pacers, as are NBA draftees Cason Wallace and Chris Livingston. Jacob Toppin signed as a free agent with the New York Knicks, while Sahvir Wheeler and Lance Ware have transferred to Washington and Villanova, respectively.

Mitchell, a graduate transfer, will assume a leadership role on a team that will be primarily composed of highly-rated freshmen. Headlined by top-15 prospects DJ Wagner Jr., Justin Edwards, Aaron Bradshaw, and Robert Dillingham, John Calipari’s recruiting class is one of the most impressive in recent memory.

Big Blue Nation is excited, but does the addition of Mitchell change the Wildcats’ outlook?

For Mitchell, the move to Kentucky makes a lot of sense on paper. West Virginia is a program in turmoil in the wake of head coach Bob Huggins’ DUI arrest and subsequent resignation, and a fresh start at a blue-blood program is a no-brainer for his final collegiate season.

The current circumstances in Morgantown make Mitchell’s transfer entirely understandable, but it is concerning that he is now joining the fourth team of his college career after previous stops at UMass and Texas.

Will Mitchell accept being the fourth or fifth option at Kentucky? Though he averaged nearly 18 points per game in his first two years at UMass, his playing time and production dropped precipitously at Texas, where he averaged 8.7 points in under 19 minutes per game. This led to a messy split with the school, with Mitchell taking a leave of absence midway through the season and his dad ripping head coach Chris Beard before his son transferred to West Virginia.

Mitchell was effective as a stretch forward last year, seeing his playing time increase back to 30 minutes per game for the Mountaineers. He shot 36.4% from three and averaged 11.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, so he obviously has the game to produce in a major conference.

Expectations, as always, will be sky high in Rupp Arena, and Kentucky fans no doubt hope that Mitchell will occupy much the same role as Darius Miller in the team’s run to the 2012 national title, a senior leader who was capable of scoring when called upon, but who took a backseat to star freshmen Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.

The range of outcomes for any Kentucky season is wider than perhaps any other program in college basketball. With such a highly regarded freshman class, the Wildcats will often field the most talented team on the floor, but how that talent translates into wins and losses is often a mystery.

Final Fours and national championships are always the aspiration, but Big Blue Nation last reached the Sweet Sixteen in 2019, with the school’s last Final Four coming in 2014, a lifetime for a program as decorated as this one.

Even in this “Wild West” era of the transfer portal, Mitchell’s over-stamped passport is worrisome. Can he be the senior leader this team needs? Will he accept that the freshmen will take up most of the spotlight? In the end, Kentucky will live or die by Calipari’s ability to get the Wildcats to jell.

Kentucky’s reasoning for adding Mitchell to the roster is sound, but it’s now up to Calipari to get the most out of his talented new big man. Even with Tshiebwe, the Wildcats disappointed in the postseason, so I’m skeptical that Calipari will be able to lead Kentucky back to the promised land with Mitchell and a host of freshmen. The Wildcats have the talent to be a top-10 team, but a lot will need to go right between now and March for that to happen.