Mark Pope provides a curious update on Braydon Hawthorne

Mark Pope says burning Braydon Hawthorne’s redshirt is “really expensive” in today’s game and he is not ready yet, stressing the need to “do it right” for Kentucky’s talented freshman guard.

Gonzaga v Kentucky | Johnnie Izquierdo/GettyImagesAsked if Kentucky was any closer to deciding whether to redshirt freshman guard Braydon Hawthorne, Mark Pope did not even pretend to dress it up.

That blunt response hides a real tension. On one hand, Pope says Hawthorne is “getting so much better every day” and there is “certainly space where he could help us.” On the other, he knows exactly how costly one decision can be in the current era.

Braydon Hawthorne may or may not play this year

“In college…