College basketball coaches believe Mark Pope was a home run hire for Kentucky

Is Mark Pope going to end up being a good hire for Kentucky?

Mark Pope exits the bus with holding a trophy as he enters Rupp Arena greeting thousands of fans for his introductory press conference on Sunday, April 14, 2024. / Clare Grant/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Kentucky hired Mark Pope this offseason to be the Wildcat's new head coach, and so far, it seems to have been a home run hire. Pope has put together an elite team full of veteran players that should be able to make a run in the NCAA Tournament. Pope also just landed his first recruit in the 2025 class, Malachi Moreno, who is the number one center in the class.

While at first, some Kentucky fans might have questioned the hire, those fans have turned around quickly, and things are looking up in Lexington.

Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander of CBS Sports asked 100 Division 1 coaches their thoughts on the new college basketball hires, and these coaches seem high on what Coach Pope brings to Lexington.

Here are two quotes Parrish and Norlander received from current D1 head basketball coaches about Kentucky's hire of Pope.

"He's not a guy that's looking for a microphone every 10 minutes to state his case. He doesn't make a lot of excuses. Basketball is what drives him. Underrated recruiter, very good talent evaluator and knows how to stay ahead of the curve offensively and be impossible to guard in space. Uses his personnel like a surgeon. Everyone on the floor is really good at something and they'll buy into that role."

- Random D1 Coach

"I know this isn't the guy Kentucky fans thought they were going to replace Cal with -- but he's already won them over. He'll be super there. And he really is a brilliant offensive coach. So not only will he be good there, but they'll be fun to watch. He might not dominate the recruiting rankings like Cal did because lots of schools are using NIL. But he'll get good players and win big."

- Random D1 Coach

Hearing his peers sing the praises of Coach Pope should give Kentucky fans hope that this hire is going to end up being a grand slam. Coach Pope has won over Big Blue Nation and his 2024-25 roster is ready to prove to the world Kentucky basketball is back to hanging banners.