25 Jody Thompson

Jody Thompson played for Feds Creek High School in Feds Creek, Kentucky where he averaged 18 points as a varsity freshman, 24 points as a sophomore and 30 points as a junior.  As a senior he averaged  28.7 points per game and 13 rebounds per game and was named first-team All-State.  He scored more than 2,500 points in his high school career.

Thompson spurned scholarship offers from Louisville and Tennessee to fulfill a childhood dream of playing for the Wildcats. Pitino convinced the lanky sharpshooter to walk on at UK for his freshman season with the promise of a scholarship in 1991-92.

As a freshman at Kentucky, Thompson quit the team in late September 1990 after suffering some dizzy spells attributed to stress then decided to return several days later.  He played in five of Kentucky’s eight games, hitting one 3-point shot and one free throw before announcing on December 25, 1990, that he would not be returning to Kentucky for the spring semester.  “Jody informed us on Christmas evening that he was unhappy with his present situation, and he has decided not to come back to UK,’ Kentucky coach Rick Pitino said in a statement.  “He indicated that he would like to transfer to another institution where he can compete at a lower level,’’ Pitino said.

Thompson transferred to Pikeville.