Mark Pope is wrestling with one of the toughest decisions of Kentucky’s young season — whether to unleash freshman Braydon Hawthorne now or protect his future with a redshirt year. And with talent reminiscent of former Wildcat legend Tayshaun Prince, the stakes feel even higher.
Hawthorne arrived in Lexington with measurements that made coaches raise their eyebrows immediately. At 6’8″ with a 7’2.5″ wingspan and a 9’1.5″ standing reach, he brings rare length and versatility for a wing. Pope has been bullish on his upside since August, saying the rookie “might have the goods” to become truly special.
But raw potential doesn’t always equal immediate production.
Despite his elite frame, Hawthorne weighs just 190 pounds, making him one of the lightest players on the roster. Physically and mentally, he’s still adjusting to the realities of college basketball — the speed, the strength, the grind. And Kentucky’s roster is deep enough already, often struggling to find minutes for 11 players even before Jayden Quaintance joins the lineup and Jaland Lowe returns to action.
So the question becomes: is it worth burning a season of eligibility for a handful of spot minutes in blowouts?
Inside the program, that’s the conversation happening right now. Pope confirmed that Reece Potter will redshirt, but Hawthorne remains undecided as coaches carefully weigh both paths.
> “Once you burn it for one second, you can’t get it back,” Pope said this week. “We’re just trying to make sure that that’s the direction we want to go.”
Everyone agrees on Hawthorne’s upside. Some around the program even believe he could become a 2027 NBA lottery pick if he commits to a full developmental year before exploding onto the scene in 2026–27 as a new-age one-and-done.
But does Hawthorne want to wait? And should he?
Pope broke it down clearly:
> “He is a really, really, really terrific young talent, and he has an incredibly bright future. He also needs to grow — there’s so much growth in him. The advantage of redshirting is that he gets to uniquely focus on developing… But there’s also value in minutes.”
Right now, the staff seems to lean toward a redshirt. But the possibility of playing this season hasn’t been eliminated. A final decision is expected soon.
> “We’re just trying to make absolutely sure that we’re making the right decision before we burn it,” Pope said. “We’ll see how that goes over the next couple of weeks.”
Hawthorne finished as the No. 35 overall prospect and No. 9 small forward in the 2025 class — ranked just ahead of fellow Wildcat Jasper Johnson.
Whether he plays now or later, one thing is clear: his future in Lexington is bright, and the next few weeks will shape the beginning of his Kentucky story.
