Kentucky native Justin Powell enters transfer portal

It’s getting close to that time of year where players will start to enter the transfer portal after their basketball season has ended.

One name dropped in today and could be a guy that could draw some interest from the Kentucky Wildcats. That would be Bluegrass native Justin Powell, who is leaving the Auburn Tigers after one season, per 247 Sports.

Powell, a Kentucky kid who played high school ball at North Oldham, had an impressive start to the season before injuries caught up to him. Through his first six games for the Tigers this season, he averaged 11.7 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists while shooting 43% from the field and 56% from three-point range.

Sadly, after suffering a significant concussion against Texas A&M on Jan. 2, Powell did not play again this season. A groin injury suffered last summer also limited him during offseason workouts.

The 6-6, 205-pound guard was ranked as the 185th-best player in the 2020 class according to 247 Sports, coming in as a three-star prospect. He chose Auburn over offers from Cincinnati, Tennessee, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech, and Xavier.

With this news, Powell will become one of the more intriguing transfer targets in the country. If not for the injuries, he could be one of the top transfers, not to mention the kind of guy the Cats could use given their struggles, especially when it came to three-point shooting for much of the season.

To go along with the one-time transfer rule going into effect for this season, one should anticipate that his phone will be blowing up from big-time programs trying to get on his list.

This is a name for fans to remember as a potential target for John Calipari and his staff to add some much-needed scoring and consistent outside shooting to next seasons roster. He’ll obviously need a clean bill of health before bigger programs offer him a scholarship, as concussions can be very tricky and scary to deal with.

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