Kentucky hasn’t seen a shot blocker as talented as Jayden Quaintance come through the program in a few years. There is seemingly unlimited potential inside the 17-year-old’s skill set, but his ability to deter shots from anywhere on the floor is going to translate right away as he goes into his second year of college.
During his freshman season at Arizona State in 2024-25, Quaintance averaged 2.6 blocks per outing, a top 10 mark in all of men’s college hoops. The 6-foot-9 big man recorded 63 total rejections across 24 games played before suffering a torn ACL that ended his season. His block percentage of 9.8 ranked among the top 20 in the country. He had 10 games of three or more rejections and just three games without any.
There are certainly areas of his game that still need improving, a main reason why he elected to transfer to Kentucky for his sophomore season in 2025-26, but there’s no denying his ability to defend the rim and prevent clean looks. With a 7-foot-5 wingspan and a quick second jump, he’s sending back shots more often than not.
It’s not as simple as sitting under the rim and waiting for someone to attack him, though. Quaintance is a versatile shot blocker. His length and quickness allow him to reject what appear to be open three-pointers. Smaller guards can get around him — something that showed up on the film — but he’s usually fast enough to recover and at least affect the shot.
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