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Who will be the Kentucky Wildcats’ first 2017 commitment be?
That answer continues to evade UK as the new season approaches fast with no recruit committed in next year’s class. However, don’t mistake that for UK not being in good shape with many recruits, several of which could pop very soon.
247 Sports recruiting director Jerry Meyer spoke with the Herald-Leader’s Ben Roberts about who UK is poised to land in 2017. Meyer gave three names that he thinks John Calipari could earn pledges from very soon.
“P.J. Washington and Nick Richards — I’d put them at the top of the list as far as the most confidence with my Kentucky predictions,” Meyer said. “And probably John Petty, as well.”
Both Washington and Richards have been mentioned recently as the likeliest commitments for UK, so it’s no surprise Meyer is echoing that sentiment. The expectation is both will sign with UK this fall.
The same is true of John Petty, who is actually set to take his official visit to UK this weekend. He’s planning to sign in November with UK being the heavy favorite over Alabama.
As for arguably the biggest recruit in 2017 for UK, Trae Young continues to have strong interest in coming to Lexington to be the latest Calipari star point guard, or stay home and play in front of friends and family on a regular basis with Oklahoma.
Even though UK is viewed by many as the slight favorite in this recruitment, the Sooners are very much in play, enough that Meyer thinks it’s hard to call right now.
“I think it’s going to come down to Oklahoma and Kentucky,” Meyer said. “Oklahoma has been very good recently, so it’s not like they’re not a good program, but the main draw is familiarity. It’s the local school. Trae’s close to his family and they like to watch him play.
“But it’s obvious he really likes Kentucky and is enamored with that program. So, it’s a tough call.”
Meyer also said he wouldn’t be surprised to see Mohamed Bamba end up at UK, though he’s still picking Duke for the five-star big man.
Elsewhere, Scout.com recruiting director Evan Daniels spoke with the cn2 gang about UK’s 2017 recruiting efforts. Daniels talked about Jarred Vanderbilt’s recent visit with UK, what NBA scouts thought of UK’s Pro Day, comparing Duke vs UK this season, and more.
Give it a listen: