Kentucky's Malachi Moreno moves higher in a new NBA mock draft

The 2025-26 season was not one to remember for the Kentucky Wildcats. There were championship expectations before the season began but injuries and a poorly assembled roster dashed those hopes early on, and the Cats stumbled to a second round exit in the NCAA Tournament.

Despite the struggles, the Wildcats did have some NBA talent on the roster. Notably, Jayden Quaintance has long been considered a top 20 draft pick, and likely still will be despite missing nearly the whole season with a knee injury.

The player currently being watched closely by Big Blue Nation is freshman center Malachi Moreno. He decided to test the draft waters, with the possibility of returning to Kentucky if his draft slot wasn't what he wanted. Early mock drafts had him going in the middle of the second round, but a new one from Bleacher Report has him going quite a bit higher, all the way up at the top of round two to the New York Knicks.

Writer Jonathan Wasserman had this to say about Moreno:

There is already enough intrigue around a 19-year-old, 7-footer with strong shot-blocking and passing metrics, plus some touch indicators. Certain teams would prefer to gamble on a freshman with Moreno's tools, production, impact and historically translatable/valued archetype, rather than a projected 23-year-old rookie in a shallow draft.

Losing Moreno to the NBA would be devastating for a Kentucky team already lacking in top end talent, and depth at center. Pope recently missed on recruit Obinna Ekezie, and little-used Reece Potter would be the only remaining center on the roster.

The NBA draft combine begins on May 10, and will play a big part in determining just where Moreno could go. If he projects into round one, it could lead him to stay in the draft. We will continue to update his status as more information becomes available.

This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: