Kentucky Wildcats reporter on UK basketball 20265-26 under Mark Pope
Kentucky Wildcats reporter Ryan Black on Year 2 under UK basketball coach Mark Pope after the season-ending loss to Iowa State in the NCAA Tournament.
- Guard Zoom Diallo has committed to Kentucky basketball after two seasons at Washington.
- Last season, he averaged 15.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game for the Huskies.
- He ranked among the top 10 players in the Big Ten in both assists per game and field goal percentage in 2025-26.
LEXINGTON — Kentucky basketball has its first transfer portal commitment of the 2026 offseason.
Zoom Diallo, a guard who spent the past two seasons at Washington, committed to UK and coach Mark Pope on Wednesday, April 15. Diallo announced the move on his personal Instagram account.
The Wildcats quickly targeted Diallo after the transfer portal opened, first setting up a Zoom meeting. A short time later, UK hosted Diallo in Lexington on April 10 and 11.
Diallo was a key member of the Huskies’ rotation the last two seasons. He appeared in all 65 games in that span, making 52 starts.
As a freshman in 2024-25, Diallo averaged 11.1 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
He upped those figures last season, averaging 15.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists per outing. Diallo also was efficient from the field, connecting on 48.9% of his shots (196 for 401). He ranked among the top 10 in the Big Ten in both assists per game and field goal percentage in 2025-26.
Under ex-coach John Calipari, Kentucky had interest in Diallo during his high school career. But UK never wound up offering Diallo before the consensus four-star 2024 recruit pledged to Washington in December 2023.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
