The Kentucky Wildcats have wanted five-star point guard Trae Young badly, and he and John Calipari have developed a strong relationship. Because of that, Young seemed highly likely to commit to Kentucky.
However, the Wildcats have now received two commits from two other talented guards, five-star Quade Green and and four-star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
That’d likely lead you to believe that Young is off the table for Kentucky. Two great guards have already committed, why would Young want to be fighting so hard for minutes between multiple other guards?
That’s why Scout.com’s Evan Daniels says UK is out for Young following Green’s commitment, which isn’t the first time Daniels said that may happen.
Just because I've been asked 24 times, since Kentucky now has Quade Green & Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, this takes Trae Young off the table.
— Evan Daniels (@EvanDaniels) November 20, 2016
Not so fast, Daniels. Rivals.com’s T.J. Walker says otherwise.
Kentucky is still a major player for Trae Young. Green's commitment changes nothing for Young, his dad tells me.
— T.J. Walker (@TWalkerRivals) November 20, 2016
And it’s not just Young’s dad who’s making it seem like Kentucky still has a chance at Young; even Young’s tweets make it look as though John Calipari still has a great shot at landing him.
Congrats bro! @Q_Green1 Looking forward to playing after HS Ball
— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) November 20, 2016
Sure, Young could mean that he looks forward to playing Green as an opponent, but the only other major player for Young is Oklahoma, and Kentucky and Oklahoma pretty much never play each other.
Young’s tweet makes it look somewhat likely that he’s coming to Kentucky. The five-star guards have shared the backcourt in the past with Team USA, on a team that featured other Kentucky targets like Mohamed Bamba, P.J. Washington, Kevin Knox and Hamidou Diallo all playing with Young and Green. There wouldn’t be any issue with those two sharing the backcourt, and it’s likely that they’d be getting the majority of the minutes.
Young and Green know each other from the past, and if that tweet is any indication, they like each other enough to play on the same team.
Don’t rule Kentucky out on Young just yet.