LEXINGTON, Ky. — After two seasons at Kentucky, Daimion Collins announced Thursday he will transfer to LSU.

Collins' father died unexpectedly just before last season tipped off. Coach John Calipari said it took such a toll on Collins that the already wiry forward lost 15 pounds from his 210-pound frame.

Collins' play dipped across the board as a result, averaging fewer points (1.9) and rebounds (1.9) per game than he did as a freshman. The 6-foot-9 forward's shooting percentage also plummeted from 57.7% to 42.5%.

Collins — a consensus five-star recruit in the Class of 2021 — signed with Kentucky out of Atlanta High School (Texas). He averaged 35.2 points, 14.4 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 6.2 blocks per game as a senior and won the state's Gatorade Player of the Year award.

That play has yet to translate to the college level.

While Collins played in 52 games with UK, he was on the floor an average of just 7.6 minutes per game, stuck behind more experienced front-court options in Oscar Tshiebwe and Jacob Toppin. Collins recorded his only three double-digit scoring efforts during his freshman season.

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With Collins and Lance Ware at new schools, Toppin remaining in the NBA draft and Tshiebwe and Chris Livingston potentially doing the same, UK has just two scholarship forwards — sophomore Ugonna Onyenso and incoming freshman Aaron Bradshaw — on its 2023-24 roster.

The Wildcats likely will continue trying to mine the transfer portal to buttress their front court before next season begins.

Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @RyanABlack.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky basketball roster: Forward Daimion Collins commits to LSU