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UPDATE
In addition, 247 Sports recruiting expert Travis Branham just logged the first Crystal Ball prediction in favor of Kentucky to land TyTy Washington. Branham has become one of the best recruiting insiders recently, so this is very good news for the Wildcats in their pursuit of arguably the top point guard in the Class of 2021.
I think it’s safe to say the addition of Chin to John Calipari’s staff is already making a positive impact on the recruiting trail.
John Calipari desperately needs to add a point guard to his roster and it appears as if the best available option is class of 2021 rising star TyTy Washington. Calipari moved in immediately on Washington after he decommitted from Creighton weeks ago.
The buzz around Washington and Kentucky was off the charts until Arizona hired Tommy Lloyd after firing Sean Miller. Arizona is Washington’s home state, and the allure of him being a hometown hero, coupled with the relentless pursuit from Lloyd, pushed the Wildcats from Tucson to the forefront of his recruitment.
But there is a new wrinkle to this story that may favor the Kentucky Wildcats. Incoming assistant coach Ron “Chin” Coleman has an existing relationship with TyTy Washington and his coach.
Derek Piper, Rivals’ lead reporter on Illinois men’s basketball, joined The Take with Andy Sweeney and myself to discuss the hiring of Chin Coleman when the subject of TyTy Washington came up. He told us that there is a relationship between Kentucky’s new assistant coach and Calipari’s No. 1 point guard target.
“He (Chin Coleman) is someone that is very tied into TyTy Washington. And prior to him committing to Creighton the first go around, Illinois was right there in a dead heat, that was the final two for him. Chin is very tight with his head coach out there at Arizona Compass Prep...in terms of Kentucky making a run at him, Chin would be a nice addition to further that pitch and try to get that relationship going.”
With the departure of Nolan Hickman, Kentucky is left in a tough spot at point guard. Washington is exactly the type of point guard that John Calipari loves/needs. With the starting job at Kentucky basically guaranteed and no NCAA cloud hanging over the program like there is at Arizona, one would think this should be a home run for John Calipari.
Washington will announce his college of choice on May 15th. Therefore, it is imperative that John Calipari pull out all of the stops in order to secure a commitment from a projected NBA lottery pick. Hopefully, the addition of Coleman will provide Calipari one last push at the end.
It will be a huge blow if Washington opts for Arizona. The transfer portal is still active, but outside of Sahvir Wheeler or Marcus Carr, there aren’t many dynamic point guard options that can impact a team the way Kentucky needs to be impacted.
Personally I think Washington ends up at UK. We won’t have long to wait for an answer. If Washington does pick Kentucky, he could provide a boost to a program that desperately needs it right now.
If you want to listen to the entire interview about Chin Coleman and what Kentucky is getting with him, start the podcast at the 35 minute mark.
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