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Recruiting never stops. With the Kentucky Wildcats headed down to Tampa on Wednesday night, a pair of high-profile recruits released final lists, and the Cats were included in both.
First, Mookie Cook. Cook released a final list of three: Kentucky, Oregon, and Gonzaga. Cook visited the Wildcats back in October, where the Wildcats coaching staff offered him a scholarship.
Cook is considered the No. 4 player in the class of 2023 via 247 Sports Composite.
For Cook, he is close with current Wildcats guard TyTy Washington, as Cook plays for Compass Prep, Washington’s old team. Washington was even Cook’s host during his official visit.
Cook spoke with Jack Pilgrim of KSR about his visit back in January:
“That’s big bro,” Cook told Pilgrim. “Of course, he came through AZ Compass, he’s always there when he comes home, in the gym working out with us. That’s big bro. He’s breaking records, just broke John Wall’s assist record, doing big things. He’s a diaper dandy. … (TyTy is) a superstar, man.”
While Kentucky is in a good position, it seems that Oregon may be in a better one. The Portland native is seen a current lean to the Ducks right now, but this seems to be a two-horse race between Kentucky and Oregon. Will the hometown win, or will the teammate/family connection at Kentucky bring it home?
Second, a surprise as 3-star Adrame Diongue included Kentucky in his final list of five. Kentucky was included along with Kansas, Texas Tech, UNLV, and Washington State. Diongue is a name that hadn’t been linked with the Wildcats, but it’s clear that there has to have been some serious conversations between the two parties.
Diongue is a seven-footer, currently ranked No. 134 by 247 Sports and the No. 24 center.
According to 247 Sports, Diongue does not hold an offer from Kentucky, however, he does hail from Compass Prep. As we said earlier, Compass Prep is TyTy Washington’s former team, as well as Mookie Cook’s current squad. It appears that the Kentucky coaching staff is trying to tap into the Chandler, AZ., pipeline.
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