There was a time it appeared Donnie Freeman was going to join Kentucky Basketball for the 2026-27 season.
However, an 11th-hour push from Rick Pitino led to Freeman ultimately signing with the St. John’s Red Storm, a move that some thought could be a crippling blow to Mark Pope’s career as head coach of the Wildcats, as he was enduring recruiting miss after recruiting miss early this offseason.
Thankfully, Kentucky rebounded to get other transfers like Justin McBride and Milan Momcilovic, along with international big man Ousmane N’Diaye, to potentially play the 4 spot next season.
And sadly, Freeman won’t be playing at all after the Syracuse transfer suffered an Achilles injury during summer workouts, according to Pitino.
This is a brutal blow for the Johnnies, as Freeman was expected to have a major role next season and potentially become an All-American candidate after averaging 16.5 points and 7.2 rebounds last season.
However, injuries have been a problem throughout Freeman’s college career thus far, so taking his commitment was going to be a risk for any school, one that seemingly wasn’t going to pay off if he’s already injured as the summer practice season gets started.
Here’s to hoping Freeman makes a full recovery and is back on the floor when the 2027-28 season tips off.