BYU point guard Dallin Hall enters transfer portal
BYU point guard Dallin Hall has entered the transfer portal, On3 has learned.
The sophomore guard enters the portal hours after his former head coach Mark Pope accepted the Kentucky head coaching job. He averaged nine points and 5.1 assists this season for the Cougars, playing in 34 games and averaging 29.3 assists.
Hall has two years of eligibility remaining and can play immediately. Pope will have to rebuild the Kentucky roster, with three players already transferring out and a handful of NBA draft decisions in the air.
On Friday morning, Jeff Sheppard, Reed Sheppard’s father, spoke on ESPN Lexington on Friday about the hiring of Pope, who was his former college teammate and roommate. With his old friend taking over the program, it’s news his son, Reed, will be mulling over as far as options for what’s next after his freshman season.
Hall was one of the biggest recruiting wins of Pope’s tenure at BYU. After going on his mission, the guard returned to Provo, Utah, and was an instant contributor. The guard leaves his two seasons at BYU averaging 8.2 points and 4.1 assists. He was a key contributor to this year’s team, which went 23-11 record, including a 10-8 record in Big 12 play. The Cougars finished fifth after being picked to finish 13th in the preseason poll.
The Honorable Mention All-Big 12 selection as a sophomore, Hall started 51 of the 68 career games he played in at BYU.
Pope, a former Kentucky player, was officially introduced as the new Kentucky head coach earlier Friday morning. According to Kentucky Sports Radio’s Matt Jones, two donors combined to make a $4 million donation to the Wildcats’ NIL efforts.
Pope signed a five-year deal at an average of $5.5 million annually. The $4 million NIL infusion is a crucial way to kickstart recruiting efforts. Typical top 30 school’s budgets range from $1 to $4 million. The $4 million donation gives Pope a strong foundation to work with.