Kentucky’s 2024 roster is full of young talent which is the reason why the Kentucky Wildcats will have a bunch of players selected in the upcoming NBA Draft.

John Calipari went back to his old philosophy of playing a bunch of talented freshmen as five true freshmen play significant minutes for the Wildcats.

Three of these freshmen are Reed Sheppard, Rob Dillingham, and Justin Edwards, and they were all listed on an NBA Draft Big Board by 247Sports. This list had Sheppard at the number one spot, Dillingham fourth, and Edwards coming in at the 22nd spot. Sheppard and Dillingham come as no surprise, but seeing Edwards back in first-round consideration is great. He struggled early in the season but has been playing excellent basketball for the Wildcats down the stretch, including making three-pointers at a high percentage.

This is what Travis Branham of 247Sports had to say about Sheppard, “In a bad draft, Sheppard is skyrocketing up the board due to his offensive skillset and his ability to play on and off the ball while also having strong defensive instincts. In today’s spacing, Sheppard’s ability to get downhill by using ball-screens, make shots from 3 and see the floor will be well-utilized in the NBA. He’s a subpar on-ball defender, but a strong team defender. He will be able to play in any situation and contribute to winning at the NBA level. Sheppard has some deficiencies, but everything else he does very well. And with his consistent play at Kentucky, he’s now out new No. 1 player on the board.”