Friday Headliners: Best Pitch for Jalen Duren Edition

Does Kentucky now hold the best pitch for who may be the top 2021 recruit?

By John Morgan Francis@MonJorgan Jun 25, 2021, 6:00am EDT

Next week, Kentucky Wildcats basketball head coach John Calipari will have a chance to win over by far and away the best center (and likely best overall) prospect in the 2022 recruiting class.

Jalen Duren, a 6’10 phenom out of Florida, will make his official visit to Lexington next week and it’s luckily right after Governor Beshear passed the Name, Image & Likeliness order.

Not only is Kentucky considered the “NBA Factory” of college basketball, one of the most decorated college basketball programs or a massive draw for national television games... but playing at UK now allows for players to capitalize off of their brand, too.

The order being administered comes at an incredible time, as recruiting for the 2022 class is well underway and it can certainly play a significant factor in where a prospect decides to take their talents. Granted, Kentucky has several other talented recruits that could influence a decision from Duren... But don’t kid yourself — this executive order is a major deal.

Duren is reportedly considering either the NBA G-League OR the National Basketball League (NBL), which is why this order impacts his decision even further. While Duren would likely make more money in the G-League than off his “Name, Image & Likeliness,” he’d still have the opportunity to produce revenue while being on one of college basketball’s biggest stages and receiving the appropriate coaching/conditioning he needs for the pros.