Mo Dioubate made a bold statement about Kentucky's defensive upside next season

Mark Pope had a couple of areas this offseason he wanted to improve on. One of them was defense, and that's exactly why he brought in the big men duo of Mo Dioubate and Jayden Quaintance. Not just that, but Tulane transfer wing Kam Williams has a strong defensive side to him, best described as a '3 and D' wing.

Pope is also pushing for big defensive improvements from Trent Noah, who showed flashes there last season, and he knows Otega Oweh won't let up on that end with his abilities. It's safe to say that the Wildcats will not be lacking in the defense department with all of the help Pope brought in to fix that area of need. Mo Dioubate spoke on Kentucky's defensive potential heading into next season when he talked with media on Monday, where he said this team's defense is shaping up to be the best Kentucky fans have seen 'in a while.'

"I think this is probably gonna be one of the best defensive team's Kentucky's seen in a while. We got guys like (Jayden Quaintance), he hasn't even played yet. Like, just knowing what he can do, and he's not even practiced yet, that's scary. Guys like me, Otega, we take pride in defense, so I feel like that's something that the team needs and stuff like that. I feel like this is gonna be a real good year defensively for us. I don't think that's gonna be one of the liabilities we have."Dioubate on Kentucky's defense.

Dioubate was a force at Alabama, and is a huge reason for Oweh's double-digit streak coming to an end last season. Not many could stop Oweh, but the 6-7 forward could. When asked where he got the mindset that helps him be great defensively, Dioubate said it was instilled in him growing up in New York City playing pickup outside. It's a tough mindset that was needed for him to be successful in his basketball journey.

Now, Pope and the Wildcats have Dioubate on their side, excited for him to punish others on the defensive end just like he did in all of his three meetings against Kentucky last season.