UK Wildcats Recruiting: All 3 2018 signees ranked in ESPN Top 25

After missing out on 5-star phenom Zion Williamson this weekend, John Calipari and company are left with just three signees for the 2018 recruiting class.

It is likely the Kentucky Wildcats will target some more unsigned players moving forward, but for now they are thankful that the current guys on board for next season continue to rise in the class rankings.

McDonald’s All-American Keldon Johnson has long been heralded as one of the most underrated players in the 2018 class, and he is finally beginning to get the recognition that he deserves. In the most recent ESPN rankings, Johnson listed as the No. 6 overall player in the class.

While leading his Oak Hill Academy team to a 28-0 record, Johnson is averaging 20.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. He has also been named to the Naismith Trophy Midseason Team.

Point guard Immanuel Quickley, who is also a McDonald’s All-American, has fallen a bit to the 17th overall position. He was ranked as high as No. 12 by ESPN when he committed to Kentucky, but he missed the first month of this high school season with mono and has been working his way through the illness.

The biggest jump for one of the recruits has been that of Tyler Herro, who has gone from a 4-star or a 5-star recruit and made his first appearance in the top-25 at the No. 25 position overall. Herro has been very impressive this season, averaging 30.5 points per game and having 5 games where he has posted 40+ points.

While it is unclear if this will be the complete 2018 class for Kentucky or not, which is ranked as the No. 4 overall class by ESPN. There have been rumors that 2019 recruit James Wiseman, who is No. 1 in that class, could reclassify to 2018 and according to most experts he is a heavy Kentucky lean.

A recent report also suggests that Kentucky will begin recruiting E.J. Montgomery, who is ranked as the No. 16 player in the 2018 class according to ESPN. He is the 5th rated power forward in the class, and Auburn and Syracuse are currently the leaders for signing him. Could Kentucky swoop in and land Montgomery this spring?

It is expected that most fans will not be satisfied with a No. 4 ranked recruiting class from Coach Cal, but the rise in the rankings for Johnson and Herro should help to ease the pain for the fan base.

If not, maybe this E.J. Montgomery highlight video will...just in case.