Kentucky is set to lose several key players for the second consecutive offseason, and yet another Wildcats star is now one step closer to leaving Lexington.
Junior guard Otega Oweh announced on Tuesday that he has decided to declare for the NBA Draft while maintaining his college eligibility.
“To the best fans in the nation, the Big Blue Nation — getting to play the game I love each day, knowing I have your support alongside my family and friends, has truly been a dream come true, and I am incredibly blessed,” Otega wrote in a statement. “I’m taking the next step and have declared for the 2025 NBA Draft, while maintaining my NCAA eligibility.”
Oweh was Kentucky’s leading scorer this past season with 16.2 points per game. He also finished with a team-high 1.6 steals per game. His strong campaign earned him a spot on the All-SEC Second Team.
Kentucky is losing at least six other players in total who have no remaining eligibility. Jaxson Robinson, Koby Brea, Lamont Butler, Amari Williams and Andrew Carr — the other Wildcats who averaged more than 10 points per game this season — are among that group.
Mark Pope had to completely rebuild Kentucky’s roster after several players followed John Calipari to Arkansas last year. In fact, Kentucky this season became the first ever NCAA men’s basketball team to reach the Sweet 16 despite not having a player on the roster who scored a single point the year before.
Needless to say, Pope could use his leading scorer back. Oweh will have until June 15 to decide if he wants to withdraw from the draft and return to college. It is possible that he will determine he has a better chance of being drafted higher next year if he dominates the SEC in 2025-26.
Until Oweh makes an official decision on what he is going to do, Kentucky fans will be sweating the potential exit of another one of their team’s stars.
