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Mark Pope is well-known around Big Blue Nation, helping bring Kentucky a national championship in 1996 as a player under Rick Pitino. Now, he’s hoping to replicate that success as a coach.
As it turns out, though, he’s not the only family member with incredible athletic ability. Three of his four daughters have excelled in competitive areas of their own right, showing the apple really doesn’t fall far from the tree!
Pope was officially introduced as John Calipari’s replacement over the weekend in front of a packed house at Rupp Arena. While the hire wasn’t the “splash” that many around the fanbase had hoped for, it’s evident that he has the backing of BBN moving forward.
That will come both in the form of fan attendance and donor support, where big-money boosters have already voiced plans to spend on NIL.
Much of that is due to Pope’s legacy in Lexington.
The 6-10 center played three seasons with the Wildcats, helping bring home a title as a senior. Nostalgia has overtaken Kentucky with Pope’s return.
A lot has changed since his playing days, however.
Not only has a professional career in the NBA come and gone, but he’s also seen head coaching stints at two college programs in the state of Utah.
He’s also grown his family with wife Lee Anne, with the couple having four daughters excited for his move back to Lexington. And it’s an incredibly athletic bunch!
Mark Pope has an insanely athletic family.
We mentioned the head coach’s playing resume, as he competed at the top level of his respective sport. His daughters have followed suit!
Oldest daughter Ella spent two seasons at Ohio where she played for the Bobcats’ women’s basketball team. An injury forced her to take last season off, but she made 10 starts the year prior.
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Across those two seasons, she averaged 5.7 points per game while shooting at a 41% clip from the field.
Next down the line is Avery, a junior tennis player at BYU.
Mark Pope, of course, was the Cougars’ head basketball coach prior to accepting the job at Kentucky. Avery was rated as a Top 5 tennis prospect in the state of Utah before signing with the program.
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Then, there’s Layla, who dances for the Utah Jazz.
According to her bio, she calls professional dancing her “dream job,” and is hoping to keep it going after wrapping up Year 1 with the NBA franchise.
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Talk about great genes!
Could there be any future Wildcats among the bunch? We’ll have to wait and see!