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Kentucky’s 2019 recruiting class is off to a fast start thanks to the commitments of Tyrese Maxey, Kahlil Whitney and Dontaie Allen.
That alone would be a great haul for any school, but for Kentucky, more is needed with expectations that much of its 2018-19 roster will be in the pros next year. Kentucky also has three open scholarships right now, so depending on how many guys they lose, anywhere from 6-8 new players could be brought in next year.
Problem is, Kentucky is having trouble just getting a fourth man in its 2019 class, and that may have just gotten harder. Three players that Kentucky is in the mix for are Isaiah Stewart, Oscar Tshiebwe and Matthew Hurt, but things aren’t looking good for any of the three.
First, Tshiebwe has set a decision date for Oct. 20, but according to Matt Jones, things don’t look good for the Wildcats.
Very likely will be West Virginia....not sure recent Kentucky interactions have gone swimmingly https://t.co/zTYjaJMtF3
— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) October 10, 2018
Things can change between now and Oct. 20, but it’s probably safe to say West Virginia remains the favorite going into his decision day.
Tshiebwe actually visited Kentucky on the same weekend that Stewart was in Lexington, and all the buzz coming out of the trip was he’d pick the Wildcats.
However, Michigan State and even Washington have been the schools getting more buzz recently. Then this week, Evan Daniels said on his podcast that he thinks Stewart does not end up at Kentucky.
It seemed odd that Kentucky was able to get back into the mix for Stewart so quickly after seemingly losing interest since the summer, then suddenly become the favorite out of nowhere. It looks like it was too good to be true, though his recruitment still remains a mystery, and it’s unclear when he’ll make a college decision now.
As for Hurt, he was reportedly set to visit Kentucky for Big Blue Madness this week, one of the biggest recruiting events of the year for John Calipari and co. However, TJ Walker reports that Hurt will not be at Big Blue Madness this weekend, though he does add that Hurt should visit at some point.
I’m told the initial report was wrong and it was never the plan for Hurt to visit this weekend. He will still visit, just not this weekend. https://t.co/vJrXJbE3Ny
— T.J. Walker (@TJWalkerKSR) October 11, 2018
Still, not getting Hurt on campus this weekend is unfortunate. Kentucky is already facing an uphill climb to pry him from Kansas, so not getting him in town for this event has to sting a little for Calipari.
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