Wildcats miss on Penn standout Jordan Dingle

The Kentucky Wildcats, really starting with the additions of Oscar Tshiebwe and Sahvir Wheeler, have been major players in the transfer market, which has turned into a free agency period of sorts for college hoops.

The Cats have the most incoming five-star recruits but will need to round out their roster with capable collegiate veterans.

Unfortunately, they have missed on Jordan Dingle, who is heading to St. John’s, which is certainly closer to Penn where he’s spent the last three seasons. Dingle was the Ivy League’s Player of the Year this past season and was a 2-time All-Ivy selection.

He averaged 23.4 points per game and shot 46.4% from the field. His three-point shooting, sitting at 35.6% for this past season, would’ve been a huge help for the Wildcats offense which often struggled from deep.

There’s even more to the puzzle though as Calipari had a connection to Dingle and still lost the recruiting battle.

Per On3, Dana Dingle was a member of Calipari’s roster at UMass. “Dana Dingle was a member of John Calipari’s Final Four squad at UMass in 1995-96, averaging 10.1 points and 7.4 rebounds in 32.5 minutes per contest,” Jack Pilgrim wrote.

That said, Pitino is excited about the addition - there’s no doubt about that. “His goals are plain and simple. As a loyal New Yorker – help bring back St. John’s to basketball royalty. Then become a first-round draft choice. I’m all in on making that happen,” he said in the announcement.

Dingle and Kentucky were linked earlier on in the process, but the Cats didn’t have the same push as other programs. St. John’s was Dingle’s only in-person visit.