Twany Beckham excited to see what Kahlil Whitney can bring to La Familia: "He's a dog."

On3 image — Photo by John Jones | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Kahlil Whitney‘s time at Kentucky didn’t go as planned, but a shot at redemption is on the table this summer.

Whitney has linked up Kentucky’s alumni team, La Familia, for The Basketball Tournament, which begins in July. He’s one of 10 players currently on this year’s roster, joining the likes of Willie Cauley-Stein, Archie Goodwin, the Harrison twins, and more. But unlike most of his fellow UK alums, Whitney’s college career took an unexpected turn. A former five-star high school recruit, he played just 18 games and averaged 3.3 points per outing for the Wildcats in 2019-20 before suddenly leaving the program and disappearing from the Big Blue Nation’s line of sight.

Until last month, that is, when Whitney shared a post on social media, reflecting on his brief time in college. “I probably just needed a hug… But instead I fell off mentally and had to gain it all back!!” he wrote on Instagram. A few weeks later, he was officially on the La Familia roster. Whitney isn’t coming back just to reconnect, though — he’s coming back to help win basketball games.

“Somebody that I’m real high on coming back is Khalil Whitney,” La Familia general manager Twany Beckham said earlier this week. “I think some of y’all saw what he put on social media a couple weeks ago, and it went viral. I was a huge fan of his when he came to Kentucky his freshman season. He was top 10 in the country. Had a lot of potential. 6-7, long, dog from Chicago. But for whatever reason, it didn’t work out for him here and he decided to leave midway through the season.”

Since leaving UK, Whitney’s basketball career has taken him all over the globe. He went undrafted in 2020 but quickly landed in the NBA’s G League, where he spent a couple of seasons with the Greensboro Swarm (Hornets) and Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Rockets). The native of Illinois has also made stops as a pro in Canada, the Dominican Republic, Croatia, Mexico, New Zealand, and most recently, Australia.

“He and I have stayed in communication,” Beckham added. “He’s played in the G League. He’s kind of traveled and tried to find his way, and he’s excited to come back. You know, he’s a dog. He’s another one of those guys that Coach (Sean) Woods implements him into what we’re doing defensively. He’s another guy that can switch. He’s long, he’s rangy, so he’s another one I’m looking forward to being around.”

Get the Daily On3 Newsletter in your inbox every morning

By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.

Across 21 games played for the South West Metro Pirates (Australian NBL One) this past season, Whitney averaged 8.3 points, 2.7 rebounds, and one assist in 23.9 minutes per contest while shooting 43 percent from the field.

Subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel for press conferences, interviews, original shows, fan features, and exclusive content.

More on La Familia in The Basketball Tournament

La Familia is the No. 1 seed in the Lexington Regional, which will take place at Memorial Coliseum July 18-22. Their TBT journey will start against Stroh’s Squad on Friday, July 18, at 9:00 p.m. ET on FS1. If La Familia advances to the second round, they will face the winner of War Ready (Auburn Alumni) and X-Rayted on Sunday, July 20, at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports.

The Lexington Regional championship game is Tuesday, July 22, at 6 p.m. ET on FS2. Tickets for the Lexington Regional are now on sale at TBTHoops.com/tickets.

The winner of the Lexington Regional will play the winner of the Louisville Regional in the quarterfinals on Monday, July 28, at 6 p.m. on FS1. The semifinals and $1 million winner-take-all championship game will be July 31 and Aug. 3.

TBT Lexington Regional Seed List