It is currently unclear as to when Jayden Quaintance will be able to make his college basketball debut at Kentucky. However, the high-profile Arizona State transfer is absolutely crushing his rehab.
He continues to break “every record known to humankind” while recovering from a torn ACL.
The second-year superstar makes most NBA players look feeble. Quaintance might be the pound-for-pound strongest player in college basketball if what his head coach says is true.
Who is Jayden Quaintance and when will he be ready?
Quaintance ranked as a top-10 player in the college basketball recruiting Class of 2024. He ultimately committed to play at Arizona State over Louisville, Ohio State, Florida, Kentucky and 16 others as a five-star prospect.
The former McDonald’s All-American averaged 9.4 points on 52.5% shooting, 7.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 29.7 minutes per game during his freshman season with the Sun Devils.
Unfortunately, Quaintance injured his knee in a game against Kansas State on Feb. 23. He was later required to undergo surgery to repair a torn ACL on March 19.
The rising sophomore entered the transfer portal just a few days after his successful operation and eventually chose Kentucky over Auburn. An exact timeline for his return remains unknown but Quaintance’s father previously claimed his son would be ready for the season-opener.
I doubt it. But if he is back getting shots up in the gym, that’s a good sign!
Kentucky’s newest college basketball transfer is a freak.
Basketball is always on the mind of Jayden Quaintance as he continues to rehab his repaired ACL. It is also always in his hand. Literally.
According to a student at the University of Kentucky named Kelly, he dribbles his way across campus.
“I’ve seen Jayden Quaintance on my way to classes a few times in the past week and he’ll just dribble a basketball through campus and crowd lol,” said @itsakellyy on X.
The topography does not matter. Quaintance stays dribbling.
“I left my dorm about two weeks ago and passed him while he was dribbling up the hill,” she continued.
As you could imagine, the 6-foot-10, 225-pound power forward is pretty easy to spot amongst his peers. And apparently he is every bit as strong as he is large— if not more so.
Head coach Mark Pope recently shared some new information about his star transfer.
Mark Pope says Jayden Quaintance is 20% stronger than comparable NBA players. pic.twitter.com/NOlgjw9Do7
— Rare Rookies #BBN (@rarerookies) October 6, 2025
Jayden Quaintance is 20% stronger than the average NBA player at his same height and weight— as an 18-year-old. I would imagine that number is measured by comparing muscle mass to fat.
Only time will tell when Quaintance can get back on the floor. If/when he does… LOOK OUT!