Kentucky Wildcats very confident in getting Mo Bamba; Bam Adebayo NBA decision has no impact

We could be several weeks away from Mo Bamba making his college decision.

For now, the Kentucky Wildcats remain confident in getting the five-star big man to Lexington, according to SEC Country’s Kyle Tucker, who also added that Bam Adebayo’s NBA decision is not impacting Bamba.

But sources tell SEC Country that confidence remains high in Lexington that Bamba will choose Kentucky over Texas and Duke, the other serious contender for his services.

One thing not factoring into his decision, per a source, is UK freshman Bam Adebayo’s NBA Draft uncertainty. Adebayo has not hired an agent and could still come back to school, but he and Bamba are different players who could certainly work together.

That would seem to indicate that, while the odds would be minimal of it happening, there is a scenario in which Bamba and Bam are on the team next season, easily making Kentucky a preseason No. 1 team. I ultimately think Bam stays in the draft, so this isn’t much more than a pipe dream right now.

In that same article, 247 Sports’ Jerry Meyer admits that Bamba’s recruitment is more of an unknown than most realize. Kentucky has been viewed as the leader for sometime now, and even Meyer’s current 247 crystal ball precision has Kentucky landing the elite big man.

But Meyer made it clear that nothing would surprise him with Bamba.

“I just feel like it’s a weird one and I think we know less than we think we know,” said Meyer. “I would not be surprised at all if, say, he went to Texas.”

If anything, all of this is a good reminder that we shouldn’t put too much stock into whoever leads this recruitment right now, whether it be Kentucky or Texas. We still have another month until the NBA Combine, and it probably won’t be until then that Bam makes the decision to remain in the NBA Draft (I do think it has some impact).

There’s also several in-home visits with coaches likely coming as they make their last pitches to Bamba. You know those final pitches from John Calipari and Shaka Smart are going to have an impact on Bamba’s thinking, and it may be what seals the deal for either side.

In the meantime, Quade Green is working to seal the deal on his own. The AAU teammates are rooming together this week at the Jordan Brand Classic, where Green is working hard to secure the big man’s services for next season.

“I’m roommates with Quade and Quade’s going to Kentucky, so he’s throwing in his pitch,” Bamba told KSR, adding that Duke signees Gary Trent Jr. and Wendell Carter have also been “pretty relentless” and even Matt Coleman has been trying to sway him to Texas. “It’s pretty chill. Everyone knows and respects the process, so there’s no pressure or anything.”

Bamba added that no decision has been made yet. I wouldn’t count on one coming until sometime in May, but for now, I still like Kentucky’s chances.