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Messenger-Inquirer, Owensboro, Ky.
Quaintance keeps UK NBA Draft streak alive
- Story byMessenger-Inquirer, Owensboro, Ky.
- Quaintance keeps UK NBA Draft streak alive
Jayden Quaintance played very little in his one year at Kentucky because of a lingering knee injury, but he still was picked No. 20 in the first round of the NBA Draft on Tuesday night.
Otega Oweh heard his name called on Wednesday night, No. 41 by the Miami Heat . His draft rights were then traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder .
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Quaintance heard his name called by the San Antonio Spurs , which just made its first NBA Finals appearance since 2014 with superstar big man Victor Wembanyama . Other former Cats Keldon Johnson and De'Aaron Fox are also on the Spurs team.
Kentucky has had at least one player selected in 19 straight drafts, the longest streak in the nation.
Quaintance is the highest NBA draft selection under Kentucky head coach Mark Pope and the first, opening-round pick. He joins Koby Brea and Amari Williams as NBA draft picks to play under Pope.
Quaintance had been projected in the 2025-26 preseason as a possible top five NBA pick. The 6-foot-10 forward didn't reach lottery pick status, which is the first 14 draft picks. The NBA Draft was in Barclays Center in Brooklyn , New York.
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Quaintance spent his sophomore year at Kentucky in 2025-26, although he appeared in just four games for the Wildcats because of that knee injury. He averaged five points and five rebounds while playing an average of 16.8 minutes across the four games.
Quaintance's best game as a Wildcat came in his first one against No. 22 St. John's, coached by former UK national championship coach Rick Pitino. Quaintance scored 10 points, grabbed eight rebounds and blocked two shots, finishing plus-18 in 17 minutes of action to help UK to the upset win.
Quaintance also played against Bellarmine, at Alabama and in what was his final game against Missouri on Jan. 7.
Quaintance was limited by the knee in the NBA pre-draft evaluation process, and was reportedly not able to fully participate in some drills. He did workouts for pro teams.
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Quaintance first arrived in Lexington after one season at Arizona State, where he had a major freshman season. Quaintance originally committed to UK when John Calipari was coach of the Wildcats.
As a freshman at Arizona State, Quaintance started all 24 games in which he played, averaging 9.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 1.5 assists while shooting 52.5% from the field. He was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team as well as the Big 12 All-Defensive Team, setting Arizona State freshman records for both total blocked shots (63) and rebounds per game (7.9).
After tearing his ACL, damaging his meniscus and fracturing his knee on Feb. 23, 2025, Quaintance had major knee surgery, then signed with Pope's Cats for the 2025-26 season.
As a high schooler, Quaintance was a five-star prospect and a McDonald's All-American. He reclassified from the 2025 class to the 2024 class and was the youngest player in college basketball during his freshman season at Arizona State.
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OTEGA OWEH
Another dream was fulfilled on Wednesday night when senior guard Oweh was selected No. 41 overall by the Miami Heat in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Oweh is the 147th all-time selection for the Kentucky men's basketball program, the nation's all-time leader in total draft selections. Oweh is the fourth player under Mark Pope in two seasons to hear his name called in the NBA Draft joining Jayden Quaintance, Koby Brea and Amari Williams.
This marks the second consecutive draft the Cats have had a player taken at No. 41 overall. Brea was picked at No. 41 a season ago — signifying the jersey number worn by Pope at Kentucky.
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Oweh would be joining two other Wildcats in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Cason Wallace in Oklahoma City . Gilgeous-Alexander is the two-time reigning most valuable player.
The Newark, New Jersey, native had a prolific two-year career for the Blue and White. He averaged 17.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game in the 72 games with the Cats, and he reached double-figure scoring in 68 games played.
During his senior season, Oweh passed Bill Spivey for the most career points scored by a Kentucky player in their first two seasons with the program (1,255). His 1,255 career points with the Cats trailed only Kyle Macy (1,411) for the most points scored all-time by a transfer.
Oweh's most spectacular performance came during the NCAA Tournament during his senior season. He had a career-high 35 points and added team highs in rebounds (8) and assists (7) in UK's overtime win over Santa Clara in the opening round. He also drained a game-tying halfcourt heave to force the extra time. His 35-8-7 stat line marked the first time a player accomplished that line in an NCAA Tournament since Larry Bird of Indiana State in 1979. Oweh also became just one of four players to ever record that stat line during the NCAA Tournament joining Bird, Bill Bradley (Princeton, 1965) and Oscar Robertson (Cincinnati, 1959). He is the only player in Kentucky history to have 30 or more points, five or more rebounds and five or more assists in an NCAA Tournament game.
