Mixed Reports on Kyle Wiltjer Leave Gonzaga Faithful Unsure

Feb 5, 2013; Lexington, KY, USA; Kentucky Wildcats forward Kyle Wiltjer (33) shoots the ball against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Rupp Arena. Kentucky defeated South Carolina 77-55. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

There might not be a more confusing, convaluded story out there than the Kyle Wiltjer story. About a week ago, news broke that Wiltjer was strongly considering transferring from Kentucky. Subsequently, transfer destinations for Wiltjer were thought up by college basketball enthusiast’s and Gonzaga. Wiltjer reportedly will transfer to a school in the northwest if he does end up transferring, to be closer to his hometown of Portland, Oregon.

As the week progressed, the Wiltjer to Gonzaga rumors grew immensely. In a story written by David Harten of NBC Sports, they mentioned Gonzaga as the proverbial front runner for Wiltjers services.

"One of the biggest stories off the college basketball offseason recently has been the late transfer of Kyle Wiltjer. Now there are reports that his new destination could already be decided.Wiltjer, who averaged 10.2 points and 4.2 rebounds for Kentucky last season, is a Pacific Northwest kid for Portland, and he may make his way back to the region, with Gonzaga reportedly being the top team on his list."

Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv reported that the two Oregon schools were out of the running, especially with Oregon landing Joseph Young from Houston.

This is where the story gets a little interesting. Bob Pockrass, a NASCAR reporter for sporting news oddly enough, talked to John Calipari before the Quaker State 400 (Calipari was supposed to drive the pace car) and told him that Wiltjer is still weighing his options and coming back to Lexington is a possibility.

People have assumed that Wiltjer was as good as gone from Kentucky, but allegedly a return to Lexington would not be far-fetched.

In the dog days of the off-season, this story has generated a great deal of media coverage, hence all of the different reports on the situation.

The way I see it, is that Wiltjer is inevitably going to transfer, but he doesn’t want to shut all of his doors before it’s too late. Kentucky is most likely going to be the favorite to win the NCAA tournament, but he would get a lot more playing time at Gonzaga. However, he would have to sit out a year at Gonzaga while he wouldn’t at Kentucky. It seems like Gonzaga and Kentucky are the only two clear options for Wiltjer at this point, unless another school comes into play.

This is a story that should develop rapidly in the coming weeks, and hopefully some light is shed on the situation.