Dick Vitale blasts Kentucky, says team should have ‘better roster’ after massive NIL investment
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Dick Vitale was on the call for Saturday’s game between Florida and Kentucky at Rupp Arena. The Gators, already assured of the SEC Tournament‘s top seed and potentially a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament if they win the conference crown, defeated the Wildcats 84-77 to drop Kentucky to 19-12 on the final day of the regular season.
The Wildcats will still make the Big Dance as an at-large team. In Big Blue Nation, though, simply getting there isn’t enough. Though Kentucky made the Sweet Sixteen in Mark Pope’s first season, he’ll face major heat if his team has a much shorter stay this time around.
To Vitale, considering the reported amount of NIL money paid to assemble the Wildcats’ roster, the return on investment hasn’t been what it needs to be.
“I’m going to say this right here: Win or lose, I’ve done several Kentucky games. Win or lose, $22 million (has reportedly been spent) in terms of the NIL for their players. I think at $22 million, they could have put together a better roster than they did. I really do,” Vitale said.
Kentucky was picked to finish second in the SEC‘s preseason poll. It ultimately finished ninth.
The Wildcats will enter the SEC Tournament as a 9 seed and will open against 16th-seeded LSU on Wednesday. The winner of that game faces eighth-seeded Mizzou on Thursday.
How far will Kentucky get in the SEC tournament? Kalshi is taking action on predictions!
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
