UPDATE | Otega Oweh withdrawing from NBA Draft, will return to Kentucky, report says

https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/wdrb.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/2/3b/23bd18ad-c96c-49d3-b130-1a81dbce77dc/68377baf0cf51.image.jpg?crop=1920,1008,0,35&resize=438,230&order=crop,resize

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Big Blue Nation can exhale. Otega Oweh is off the NBA Draft clock.

According to a report from Joe Tipton of On3 Sports, the Kentucky guard will withdraw from the NBA Draft and return to Lexington for his second season with the Wildcats.

It’s a major boost for coach Mark Pope, who now retains his leading scorer and a defensive stopper — a player projected to be the centerpiece of a Kentucky team widely expected to start the season in the national top five.

Oweh, a 6-foot-4-inch guard, averaged 16.2 points per game last season while bringing consistent energy on both ends of the floor. He had drawn strong interest from NBA teams during the pre-draft process. CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander reported that Oweh had received “really, really good” feedback from front offices.

Still, Oweh entered the final hours before Wednesday’s 11:59 p.m. withdrawal deadline as a borderline selection — and the decision ultimately came down to more than just draft status.

“This is a decision that’s going to depend on his ticker,” Pope told The Cats’ Pause magazine. “Because that’s what’s going to carry him through the next year.”

With the return of Oweh and the recent news that Pittsburgh transfer Jaland Lowe also has withdrawn from the draft, Pope’s backcourt is taking final form. Lowe averaged nearly 17 points, 5.5 assists and just over two steals per game last season for the Panthers.

Oweh’s return isn’t just about roster stability — it’s about leadership, continuity and potential stardom. He gives Pope a go-to scoring option and a veteran presence on a reloaded roster with big expectations.

Pope was consistent in saying that whatever decision Oweh made, it had to come from the heart.

“Otega has earned this right to make the decision,” Pope said. “He’s an incredibly special person with an incredibly bright future.”

Kentucky fans are no strangers to late draft decisions, but Oweh’s case carried added intrigue. He was already a proven college star — yet not a lock to be drafted in the NBA’s first round. The calculus was complex, but in the end, the pull of another season in blue and white was strong enough.

“He’s been dreaming about playing in the NBA for a long time,” Pope said. “So if he thinks, ‘This is my moment and I’ve got to go,’ then he has to go. That’s what we want for him.

“But if he feels like, ‘My heart is telling me I’ve got unfinished business at Kentucky,’ and he wants to run this back, then that’s what he needs to do.”

Oweh has his answer. And now, so does Kentucky.