LEXINGTON, Ky. — The first decision of Chris Livingston’s offseason has been made.
It might be a while before Kentucky fans know exactly where he’ll be by the time the next basketball season begins.
Livingston — a 6-foot-6 forward — announced Wednesday that he will declare for the 2023 NBA draft after one year with the Wildcats, though he has not shut the door on a return to college.
“Basketball means everything to me, and it was a dream of mine to be part of an incredible basketball program like the University of Kentucky,” Livingston’s announcement said. The freshman went on to thank Big Blue Nation, his teammates, his coaches, his family and others for their support. “With that being said, I’m declaring for the 2023 NBA Draft. It’s only up from here.”
Livingston joins 2022-23 UK teammates Antonio Reeves, Jacob Toppin, Oscar Tshiebwe and Cason Wallace in declaring for the draft. Livingston, Reeves and Tshiebwe have all kept open the possibility of returning to college basketball next season.
A five-star recruit in the 2022 class, Livingston came to Lexington last year as the No. 12 overall prospect in the 247Sports composite rankings and was viewed then as a possible one-and-done draft pick. The Akron, Ohio, native didn’t put up gaudy stats as a freshman — 6.3 points and 4.2 rebounds per game — but he did emerge as a starter for the Wildcats and finished the season as one of the team’s most important players, largely playing a high-energy role down the stretch.
Livingston was on the court for at least 30 minutes in 10 of Kentucky’s final 11 games after not hitting that playing-time mark at all until Jan. 31. He had back-to-back double-doubles in wins over Florida and Tennessee in February — two games that came amid UK’s most-impressive stretch of the season — and tallied 11 points and seven rebounds in the Wildcats’ NCAA Tournament loss to Kansas State last month.
Following that defeat, Livingston said he didn’t know what he planned to do in the offseason.
“I’m not sure,” he said in the postgame locker room. “I just know that, for right now, I’m just really hurt about this loss, and I wish we could’ve continued the season. I feel like we were right there. I feel like this team was more than capable of making a deep, deep run in this tournament. And I’m just really sad that we couldn’t make it happen.”
Livingston also said that day that he could “possibly” see himself returning to Kentucky for a sophomore season. And the door could still be open for such a scenario.
Though not widely projected as a pick in the 2023 NBA draft, it’s possible that Livingston could emerge as a viable selection as he goes through the pre-draft process. ESPN ranks him as the No. 85 overall prospect for this year. The 2023 draft will include a total of 58 picks.
The NBA combine is set for May 15-21, and the deadline for college players to withdraw and retain their NCAA eligibility isn’t until 11:59 p.m. on May 31, so it could be a long wait for John Calipari and the UK coaching staff as they try and figure out what the 2023-24 roster will look like.
There has also been talk in college basketball circles that Livingston might look to transfer to another college in search of a bigger role, though that buzz has died down in recent days. Any college player considering such a move must enter the NCAA transfer portal by May 11.
“I’m excited for Chris and his family to go through this part of the process on his journey,” Calipari said in a news release Wednesday. “Coming in as a physical wing, Chris showed substantial growth as this season went on and proved to be a capable scorer, reliable defender and a relentless rebounder.”
Livingston’s final decision will be a big one for Kentucky’s 2023-24 season.
The Wildcats will welcome in the nation’s No. 1-ranked recruiting class, but Calipari will need some veterans to bolster his roster, and most of the major contributors from this past season’s team are expected to be leaving Lexington this offseason.
Livingston embraced a supporting role as a freshman on a team that featured seniors Tshiebwe, Reeves and Toppin at the top of the scoring column, though he showed flashes of his own offensive capabilities as well as promising signs as an energetic rebounder and defender, especially late in the season.
He made 26 starts as a freshman and joined Reeves as the only two Wildcats to play in all 34 games amid a season that was hampered by injuries.
Toward the end of the regular season, Livingston talked about taking a step-by-step process to becoming a better player and how that also extended to Kentucky’s season as a whole.
“That’s been my mindset ever since I’ve been playing basketball,” he said. “It’s not trying to build a house in one day. Our goal is to do everything brick and brick, and if we do that, we’ll stay consistent. Consistency is key, and in the bigger picture, everything will fall into place. We just keep stacking — brick by brick — doing what we need to do, taking care of what we need to take care of, and everything else will fall into place.”
