The summer recruiting circuit and all-star games have concluded, which means everyone is updating their Class of 2017 rankings.
After Scout.com released their new rankings, ESPN has now followed suit. As has been the case in every ranking, Mohamed Bamba remains at No. 4 behind only DeAndre Ayton, Michael Porter Jr. and Wendell Carter Jr.
John Calipari is looking to make Bamba the centerpiece of the Kentucky Wildcats' 2017 class, and seeing the 7-foot big man ranked so highly helps justify that.
But Bamba isn't UK's only major target who did well in the new ESPN rankings. Kevin Knox (7), Hamidou Diallo (11), Nick Richards (12), Trae Young (15) all cracked the top 15. Along with Bamba, I feel good about UK getting at least three of these guys and won't be surprised if Calipari lands all five.
Also making the Top 25 were P.J. Washington (16), Lonnie Walker (19), Quade Green (2), Jarred Vanderbilt (23), and John Petty (25). I would say UK lands at least two guys from that group, and maybe more depending on how UK does with the first group.
Here is the new ESPN Top 25 for the Class of 2017:
Rank |
PLAYER |
POS |
HOMETOWN |
HT |
WT |
GRADE |
1 |
C |
Phoenix, AZ |
7'0'' |
220 |
97 |
|
2 |
SF |
Seattle, WA |
6'10'' |
212 |
97 |
|
3 |
PF |
Atlanta, GA |
6'9'' |
254 |
97 |
|
4 |
PF |
Harlem, NY |
6'11'' |
210 |
97 |
|
5 |
PG |
Wilmington, DE |
6'3'' |
183 |
96 |
|
6 |
C |
San Diego, CA |
6'11'' |
244 |
95 |
|
7 |
SF |
Tampa, FL |
6'8'' |
203 |
95 |
|
8 |
SG |
Apple Valley, MN |
6'5'' |
200 |
95 |
|
9 |
Mitchell Robinson |
C |
New Orleans, LA |
6'11'' |
215 |
95 |
10 |
Collin Sexton |
SG |
Mableton, GA |
6'3'' |
175 |
95 |
11 |
Hamidou Diallo |
SG |
Queens, NY |
6'5'' |
188 |
95 |
12 |
C |
Queens, NY |
6'11'' |
250 |
95 |
|
13 |
SF |
Saginaw, MI |
6'7'' |
190 |
95 |
|
14 |
Kris Wilkes |
SF |
Indianapolis, IN |
6'7'' |
194 |
95 |
15 |
Trae Young |
PG |
Norman, OK |
6'2'' |
170 |
94 |
16 |
P.J. Washington |
PF |
Frisco, TX |
6'7'' |
232 |
94 |
17 |
Austin Wiley |
C |
Birmingham, AL |
6'9'' |
250 |
94 |
18 |
Troy Brown Jr. |
SF |
Las Vegas, NV |
6'6'' |
210 |
93 |
19 |
Lonnie Walker |
SG |
Reading, PA |
6'4'' |
192 |
93 |
20 |
PF |
Los Angeles, CA |
6'10'' |
230 |
93 |
|
21 |
SG |
Jonesboro, GA |
6'5'' |
207 |
92 |
|
22 |
Quade Green |
PG |
Philadelphia, PA |
6'1'' |
170 |
92 |
23 |
Jarred Vanderbilt |
PF |
Houston, TX |
6'8'' |
200 |
91 |
24 |
SG |
Mullins, SC |
6'3'' |
180 |
91 |
|
25 |
SG |
Huntsville, AL |
6'5'' |
185 |
91 |