The college basketball season is still months away but Kentucky men's basketball is getting in on some action early, taking part in the GLOBL JAM showcase in Toronto.

This year marks the second-annual event North of the United States border, where one men's Division-I NCAA team represents the entire country against other under-23 national teams.

The competition is no joke — just ask the 2022-23 Baylor Bears. Baylor was the first program to represent the USA at the GLOBL JAM debut last year, and they went 0-3 during pool play. They eventually defeated Canada in the first round of the single-elimination playoffs before falling to Brazil in the championship.

Kentucky got off to a much better start this year, defeating Germany 81-73.

The Wildcats are a young team headlined by their No. 1-ranked recruiting class with five-star prospects like D.J. Wagner, Justin Edwards and Aaron Bradshaw (who didn't suit up due to a foot injury). As head coach John Calipari said during his halftime and postgame interview, this team has only practiced 10 times, entering this tournament with very limited experience.

MORE: D.J. Wagner, Justin Edwards and other 2024 NBA Draft prospects to watch

But Kentucky was still able to pull out the win behind Wagner and a few of their upperclassmen contributors.

How did D.J. Wagner play in his Kentucky debut?

I was extremely impressed with Wagner's first taste of action at Kentucky. The five-star prospect was seen as more of a combo guard in high school, but he handled the ball as a lead guard in his first game under Calipari.

Wagner commanded the offense with the poise of a veteran. He kept the ball moving in the halfcourt, setting up his teammates for easy looks from beyond the arc and at the rim. Wagner dished out a team-high-tying six assists, using his gravity on drives to kick out to open shooters on multiple occasions.

He showed off his quick first step on several attacks to get downhill to the rim, including a grab-and-go off of a defensive rebound where he looked like he hit a turbo button to beat everyone to the basket.

And just when he made a habit of using his burst of speed to beat his defenders, he pulled out a lethal stepback 3-ball to put his entire offensive arsenal on display.

SMOOTH, DJ 🤝 pic.twitter.com/ucNcPE3jsw

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) July 12, 2023

Whenever he was off the ball, he kept the offense flowing with movement and cuts to free himself up for easy buckets, letting his combo guard skills shine. He had a nice give-and-go with Tre Mitchell and also knocked down a catch-and-shoot 3.

On defense, he played brought his typical tenacious energy on the ball and even had a few smart rotations to contest shots at the rim.

Wagner finished with 15 points, six assists, two rebounds, two steals and two blocks while shooting 7-for-15 from the field and 2-for-5 from 3.

He also had five turnovers — giving him some mistakes to clean up for the next game — but that will be a learning experience as he appears to take the reins on the lead guard position for his freshman season.

Kentucky (USA)'s next game will be against Canada at 8 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network in the United States and Sportsnet in Canada.

Other Kentucky player performances

• Tre Mitchell: The transfer senior made his impact felt immediately in his first game with a new program. Mitchell went for 24 points and six rebounds, knocking down four 3-pointers for the Wildcats. He'll be a jack-of-all-trades for Kentucky this season after previously playing at UMass, Texas and West Virginia.
• Antonio Reeves: Reeves tested the NBA Draft waters but elected to return to Kentucky and use his COVID eligibility year. He had 18 points and knocked down three 3s to give the Wildcats a jolt on offense.
• Rob Dillingham: The freshman who spent last season playing in Overtime Elite only scored six points in 18 minutes of play, shooting 3-for-9 from the field with one 3-pointer.

Kentucky GLOBL JAM schedule