Nate Sestina talks Kentucky commitment

On Thursday, Nate Sestina make his official announcement that he plans to play for the University of Kentucky next season. Besides that announcement, we have not heard much from him. That is until the latest addition of the Locked On Kentucky podcast.

Sestina spoke to Curtis Burch and Kyle Tucker about his decision to commit to Kentucky, what led him there, and what he expects moving forward.

“I think the thing that I really appreciated about the coaching staff here is they were just brutally honest about everything,” he said about Kentucky’s recruiting pitch. “They weren’t sugar-coating anything, promising minutes or anything like that. If you work hard, you’re going to play.”

We hear that from every recruit, right? “This place isn’t for anybody.” That is exactly what Sestina wanted to hear. On the podcast, he talks about his visit to Kentucky, talking with Reid Travis, who was in a similar situation last year, and walking into Rupp Arena to imagine suiting up in front of Big Blue Nation.

“That’s something I’m really looking forward to.” Sestina says about transitioning to a major program. “Playing in the NCAA Tournament two years in a row I think has really helped me with that. It’s kind of prepared me for playing in front of that.”

You can even hear about his first conversation with John Calipari, and what it was like for him to get that phone call.

“At first I was like, this is crazy,” Sestina said. “Nobody where I’m from gets this phone call. Honestly, I’m just super humbled and super blessed to have the opportunity that has presented itself. It’s nothing short of surreal to me.”

After he finishes the spring term, Sestina will likely head to Lexington to get started with the next step of his college basketball career. Check out the entire episode of the Locked on Kentucky podcast to hear more from Sestina and what excites him most about playing for the Kentucky Wildcats