Tuesday Headlines: Jalen Duren Watch Edition

Duren’s recruitment is in the home stretch.

By Zac Oakes@ZacOakes Jul 27, 2021, 6:40am EDT

The Jalen Duren recruitment is now in the home stretch, and it could be anyone’s game.

Duren is deciding between the professional route, Miami, Memphis, and Kentucky, and KSR’s Jack Pilgrim recently reported that it seems those close to the recruitment aren’t sure which way the final decision might go.

After dozens of conversations during the regular season portion of Peach Jam, Miami (FL) was discussed by national sources as the likely landing spot for Duren largely in part due to the five-star center’s relationship with assistant coach DJ Irving, who previously coached him in high school and with Team Final on the EYBL circuit. Another source close to the situation told KSR that Duren himself likes Memphis’ Penny Hardaway and his experience in the NBA as a four-time All-Star, while his mother likes Kentucky and its pitch from a development and branding standpoint.

Each of the schools bring something different to the table for Duren. Whether it’s familiarity with coaches, the appeal of a head coach with an NBA past, or the NBA track record of playing at Kentucky, Duren and his family seem torn on which route to go.

And now, we could really expect a decision anytime. The main thing holding a decision back was Peach Jam. Now with that event in the rear view, a decision could come anytime. With it being such a close race, it seems like it might be a bit before a decision is made.

It goes without saying Kentucky would benefit immensely from adding Duren to the roster. He has the ability to play either front court spot, and he’s a top-level recruit that Kentucky hasn’t brought in for a few years.

Kentucky isn’t the leader by any stretch, if there even is one, but it seems that John Calipari and the coaching staff are willing to push all their chips in down to the wire to try to add one more star to the 2021-2022 Wildcats.

We’re officially on Jalen Duren watch now.

Tweet of the Day

Just listened to @PeteThamel say he sees a 10 game SEC.schedule coming. If that happens this becomes a real question. https://t.co/MwFKMg2nej
— Justin Rowland (@RowlandRIVALS) July 26, 2021