Jon Rothstein made a bold prediction about Kentucky's Jayden Quaintance next season

There's a reason Mark Pope immediately went after Arizona State transfer Jayden Quaintance when he hit the portal, and there's also a reason why so many NBA scouts and analysts are very high on Quaintance, with nearly all of the early 2026 NBA Draft boards having him somewhere among the top 10. That NBA potential comes from the defensive end, where he is looking to build on his production from last season before his injury in February.

CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein recently raved about Pope's work in the portal, but it was none other than Jayden Quaintance who Rothstein praised about the most on his podcast, calling him a game-changer for the Wildcats and giving him extremely high praise for what he could do when healthy. As for when that is though, the timetable is not exactly certain.

"To me, the real wildcard, the real guy that can change things for Kentucky this season is Arizona State transfer Jayden Quaintance. (He) is coming off an ACL injury. I have talked about this with Mark Pope on this podcast, I have talked about this with Mark Pope off this podcast: When you try to figure out when Jayden Quaintance is going to return to the court, there is still no firm timetable, there is still no answer. Kentucky has said repeatedly that they hope to get Quaintance back for the start of the season, but taping thid right now on July 14th, nobody knows. But watching this kid last year when he was at Arizona State, watching his timing on defense, watching his ability to read opposing offenses, if he's healthy, Jayden Quaintance, in my opinion, has a legitimate chance to be in the discussion to potentially be a National Defensive Player of the Year candidate. ...I think if you're looking for a wildcard, a player that could change Kentucky, a program that hopes every single year to go to the Final Four and have a chance to win a National Championship, that player is Jayden Quaintance."

As Rothstein put it, Quaintance really is an 'absolute game-changer defensively.' The 6-9 big man has all of the tools to be special next season in Lexington, and Pope definitely knew that when he went after him in the portal. Defense was an area that was lacking last season, and Quaintance is one of the pieces Pope and the staff brought in to patch that need. Last season with the Sun Devils, he averaged 9.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 1.5 assists as well as 2.6 blocks and 1.1 steals on the defensive end in 24 games played. To put his defensive numbers into perspective, Quaintance had the 19th-best block percentage in all of college basketball last season.

A healthy Jayden Quaintance could be a scary sight for opponents next season.