Knox should be one of Hogs top paid players upon return

Over the team's final 15 games, Knox posted nearly 11 points, four rebounds, two assists on 54% from the field, 45% from three and a healthy 79% at the free throw line.

Not only has he adjusted how to play at the college level, Knox can continue to develop as an offensive playmaker and potentially be the focal point of Arkansas' offense next season.

Of course, Calipari brings in his next crop of freshmen headlined by a pair of 5-star McDonald's All-American guards Darius Acuff and Meleek Thomas.

Both young men have displayed an ability to score at a high clip throughout their prep careers, respectively.

Like Knox, there is often a freshman wall to navigate around but should be completely capable of shooting themselves out of it.

One other key in bringing back Knox to go along with other returners such as D.J. Wagner, Trevon Brazile and Billy Richmond is for team chemistry.

Each of them played a vital role in turning the team around last season after a 1-6 start in SEC play.

Once the calendar flipped to February and things began to click, the team learned to rely on each other in moments of adversity.

"[Getting to the Sweet 16] definitely shows our chemistry, how much of a brotherhood are we," Knox said after the loss to Texas Tech. "We started out 0-5 and we came to the Sweet 16."

Proper expectations would be that Knox can develop into a star in Calipari's system due to his size, length, athleticism and shooting ability.

He is a three level scorer who forced the issue whether he played shooting guard or wing.

It's also hard to ignore the leadership quality he brings to the roster after struggling early on during his freshman season.

There were times when Arkansas could have let go of the rope and allowed the 2024-25 season to be a lost one but his never give up attitude was a contributing factor to the Razorbacks turnaround.

Knox is in a similar situation as Wagner with connections to Calipari's staff going back a decade to when his brother, Kevin played at Kentucky in 2018.

Calipari's history of getting his players to the league intrigued Karter as he wanted that for himself and join his brother as a first round draft pick.

It might take an extra 12 months to hear his name called but things are much different in college athletics now that just five years ago.

Players like Knox have an opportunity to profit more off their name, image and likeness in comparison to late first round and second round draft picks.

Those drafted toward the end of the first round are projected to make around $2.3 million in their first year in the league.

With the Razorbacks supposedly in the $10 million roster club, it makes sense that Knox and some of his teammates have a rather high salary this year.

"These programs either have $10 million committed already or are easily capable of reaching that total in roster-building efforts by the end of this year's transfer cycle.
They are 2025's whales of the portal, loading up on most of the priciest players and drastically inflating the market in the process."Matt Norlander, CBS Sports.

Other teams reportedly meeting that threshold alongside Arkansas include Texas Tech, Duke, BYU, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, North Carolina, Michigan and St. John's.

Florida, the defending national champions aren't far behind with around $8 million in funds pledged for next season.

The Gators signed Razorbacks transfer point guard Boogie Fland in a package that is believed to have surpassed $2.1 million, which should make him one of the highest paid players in the country.

HOGS FEED: