Kentucky basketball: Can the No. 3 recruiting class deliver a national title for John Calipari?

Kentucky basketball’s incoming recruiting class will be counted on bringing the Wildcats back to the Final Four and winning a national championship.

Kentucky basketball head coach John Calipari finds himself in a rare and unique position this upcoming season without having the need to replenish what seems like his entire roster year-over-year. Sophomores Ashton Hagans and Immanuel Quickley are returning to Lexington for 2019-2020, which will mark the rare occasion of point guard stability for a Calipari lead team.

Bucknell graduate transfer Nate Sestina is also joining the Wildcats to help offset the losses of Reid Travis and PJ Washington. Kentucky is still awaiting final decisions on forwards Nick Richards and E.J. Montgomery. A return to Kentucky for one or both of the forwards would give the Wildcats four to five returning players with a tremendous amount of competitive college experience. The return of Hagans and Quickley alone arguably give one of the (if not the) Wildcats the best starting/backup point guard combo in the country.

The greater certainty of the Wildcats back and frontcourts next season allowed for coach Calipari to hyper-focus on wing/perimeter players for his 2019 recruits.

The four-man class coming to Lexington are a group of versatile players that will allow for coach Calipari to be creative with his lineups as well as continue Kentucky’s recent rosters stock full of length and athleticism.

Kentucky owns the No. 3 recruiting class according to the 247Sports Composite Ranking. Three of the Wildcats four commits are ranked in the top-25 of the country, with Dontaie Allen being the lone exception ranked at 111. However, note that Allen was a big-riser on the rankings during last summer. Allen’s ranking also suffered this year when he suffered a torn ACL early into his senior season.

Below you will find a brief scouting report on the incoming recruit and what this means for Kentucky. The numbers in parenthesis next to a player’s name are indicative of their rank according to 247Sports.

• Kahlil Whitney (9) – Lengthy wing with NBA measurables and plus wingspan. Elite athlete who can score at every level. Took next step this year with highly consistent perimeter play. Will be a weapon in transition immediately. Expect Whitney to be a  solid defender and rebounder as a freshman. Playmaking needs improvement as he does not facilitate at high-level. His frame needs to improve but is safe to assume so given he will enter a college strength program. Strong one-and-done candidate.
• Tyrese Maxey (11) – Maxey is likely the player who can raise Kentucky’s ceiling the most. He is very explosive and one of the better athletes in the 2019 class.  Maxey is also one of the best shooters in his class and can score off the bounce or catch. A tremendous competitor, Maxey could be one of the Wildcats leaders as the season goes on. He will compliment Hagans and Quickley as another ballhandler who can initiate the Wildcats offense.
• Keion Brooks (25) – Lengthy perimeter play who can legitimately play 2-4. Another explosive athlete, Brooks is currently stronger closer to the basket than he is on the perimeter. Three-point shooting will improve. Brooks most glaring weakness is his lack of strength, which once again will be addressed with an elite weight training staff. Brooks can defend 2-4 as well. Of all incoming Wildcats, Brooks success will hinge the most upon how quickly he can transform his body.
• Dontaie Allen (111) – Allen had a breakout summer last year with his scoring abilities, specifically his three-point shooting. Unfortunately, a torn ACL early into his senior year hindered his development. His recovery will dictate how much he contributes as a freshman. Can develop into an NBA player and is right now tracking as a multi-year player for Kentucky.

What the incoming class means for Kentucky in 2019-2020

Kentucky will be able to have continuity with their style of play from the previous year to this upcoming season. The Wildcats can be an extremely dangerous team, especially if their returning sophomores develop appropriately from their first year playing college basketball.

The added length and versatility from the incoming freshman class will be able to duplicate the aggressive defense that Kentucky is known for. Offensively the incoming freshman offers a nice combination of shot creation and shot making, especially from the perimeter, which will let Kentucky’s forwards have favorable matchups in the post.