Kentucky basketball recruiting: The one 5-star recruit the Wildcats can’t lose in 2021

Kentucky basketball can’t miss out on five-star recruit Jaden Hardy.

John Calipari‘s Kentucky Wildcats have been masters at the recruiting game. That looks to continue in the 2021 cycle where Kentucky basketball recruiting efforts are still in the early stages so don’t be alarmed that the Wildcats don’t have a single commit yet. It’s very early and Kentucky basketball is exceptional at closing the deal.

So while it’s premature to talk about where the Kentucky basketball recruiting class may finish in the Team Rankings, it’s never too premature to look at the top recruits and project where they may play their college basketball or if they’ll go the professional route before being eligible for the NBA Draft.

Kentucky basketball will have a number of targets on their recruiting board at various positons the coaches look to fill, but with a program like this, you can usually limit it to the best of the five-star recruits.

Coach Cal isn’t usually known for offering unheralded recruits who may need the full four-year experience at college before blossoming into a quality player. In the one-and-done era, Kentucky has been the best at bringing in elite talent, and that could continue in 2021 if they’re able to land their top five-star prize.

Kentucky basketball recruiting classes are often full of five-star recruits, but who is the one five-star recruit the Kentucky Wildcats can’t lose in 2021?

Jaden Hardy is the top target for Kentucky basketball as the No. 6 overall recruit and the No. 1 combo guard in the nation, according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings. He’s narrowed his list of teams down to 12 with Arizona, Arizona State, Georgetown, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Memphis, Michigan, Oregon, Texas Tech and UCLA hoping to seal the deal.

The 6-foot-4, 190-pound guard has a projectable frame that can add strength and weight to withstand the rigors of the NCAA basketball schedule and to put himself in position to be a potential lottery pick in the NBA Draft.

Hardy has good size, athleticism, vision and court awareness. He can score from the bucket to beyond the 3-point line, but he’ll need to become more efficient as he develops and limit his turnovers. These are all common areas that high school juniors need to continue to refine throughout their stages of growth.

At this stage of his game, Hardy is an elite prospect who could be the floor general for a team that makes a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. He may not be the uber-prospect that Anthony Edwards or Cole Anthony was when they had their freshmen seasons this past year, but he projects to be an immediate difference-maker wherever he ends up.

Kentucky basketball fans are hoping he’ll be the signature recruit of this year’s class and entice other top recruits to follow him to Big Blue Country, including No. 4 overall recruit Paolo Banchero.

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