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Oscar Tshiebwe returning to Kentucky Wildcats for 2022-23 season
When Kentucky's John Calipari was asked about Oscar Tshiebwe’s upcoming decision to declare for the NBA Draft or return to school, the Wildcats' head coach didn’t hold back about what it would mean for his program if the reigning National Player of the Year came back to Kentucky.
"If he leaves, I’ll be sad because I’d love to coach him another year," Calipari told FOX Sports College Basketball Analyst Andy Katz earlier this month. "If he chooses to come back, our whole thing becomes ‘let’s win a national title … let’s go.'"
Kentucky’s national title hopes got a big boost on Wednesday as Tshiebwe announced he is returning to Lexington for his senior season. The projected second-round pick made the announcement on SportsCenter, saying he made up his mind last week and his current draft projection was a large reason why he made the decision to return to school.
"I’ve always wanted to be a lottery pick, but I’m not there yet," Tshiebwe said. "I think I will get there."
With his return, Tshiebwe is set to become to first Wooden Award winner to return to college since North Carolina’s Tyler Hansbrough back in 2008.
Tshiebwe was near unstoppable in his first season at Kentucky after transferring from West Virginia. The 6-foot-9, 255-pound forward averaged 17.4 points and 15.1 rebounds per game, becoming the first D-I player to average 15 points and 15 rebounds in 42 years.
Tshiebwe recorded 28 double-doubles during the 2021-22 season, including 16 straight to close out the campaign. In addition to winning the Wooden Award, he was also named the AP Player of the Year, Naismith Player of the Year, NABC National Player of the Year, SEC Player of the Year and a consensus first-team All-American.
Kentucky finished last season with a 26-8 record and received a No. 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament. However, the Wildcats’ season came to an abrupt end following an unforeseen first-round loss to 15-seed Saint Peter’s.
With Tshiebwe announcing his return, along with the potential return of guard Sahvir Wheeler and a pair of five-star recruits set to join the Wildcats in Chris Livingston (No. 7-ranked prospect, per 247Sports.com) and Carson Wallace (No. 8-ranked prospect), Kentucky should be one of the national title favorites heading into next season.
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