Kentucky pursuing former Duke Blue Devil in the transfer portal

Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope has zeroed in on another target in the transfer portal, and he is a former Duke Blue Devil.

We don't often see former Duke players make the move to Lexington, but Coach Pope is trying to make that a reality by going after Jeremy Roach.

Last season for the Blue Devil, Roach averaged 14 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting 42.9% from three.

The 6'2 guard is an excellent shooter who would be a good fit for Coach Pope's pass and shoot offensive system.

The Wildcats are looking to add some veterans to the 2024-25 roster, knowing that almost all of last season's roster and the recruiting class are gone. Roach has played in a lot of important basketball games, and he has shown up more times than not. For Duke, last season, between the two games against North Carolina, Roach scored 33 points despite the Blue Devils being swept by the Tar Heels.

He averaged 14 points in the NCAA Tournament as the Blue Devils made a run to the Elite Eight but ended up losing to NC State.

It sounds like Rick Pitino of St. John's and Coach John Calipari of Arkansas will be in the battle for Roach. It will be two former Kentucky coaches against a newly hired Kentucky coach for one of the top guards in the portal.

This will be a fun battle, but it sounds like Coach Pope has a real chance to land one of the best veterans available in the portal.