Will five-star Jasper Johnson start for the Kentucky Wildcats?

Mark Pope's roster for the 2025-26 season is nearly completed unless he wants to add some more depth pieces, as he did by bringing in Reece Potter.

Assuming Otega Oweh is back this season for the Wildcats and pulls his name out of the NBA Draft conversations about who will start in the backcourt for Kentucky will begin. Jaland Lowe and Oweh are the two locked-in starters for the Wildcats, but the question is, who else will start alongside these two?

The three names that seem to make the most sense are Denzel Aberdeen, Kam Williams, or Jasper Johnson. There is a solid case to be made about why all three of these players should start for Pope's team.

Williams and Aberdeen have both played some college basketball before, but Johnson is a five-star freshman. While both Williams and Aberdeen are great three-point shooters, Johnson has a slight edge as a shooter.

The case for Johnson to start would have to include an offseason where he is making so many shots that it is nearly impossible to keep him out of the lineup.

Johnson is dominant in catch and shoot situations but also shifty enough to create his own shot. It will not be easy for Johnson to beat out Aberdeen or Williams, but if he is able to get this done, it means he played so well in the offseason that Coach Pope could not keep him off the floor.

Even if Johnson does not start for the Wildcats, he is going to be a sharpshooter off the bench for this basketball team.