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As the Kentucky Wildcats look to finalize the roster for next season, an important transfer is set to visit Lexington this week.
According to 247 Sports recruiting guru Travis Branham, San Diego State transfer Keshad Johnson is visiting UK from May 10-12.
This comes after Johnson visited the Arizona Wildcats this past weekend.
San Diego State transfer Keshad Johnson will visit Kentucky on May 10-12, a source tells @247SportsPortal.
— Travis Branham (@TravisBranham_) May 8, 2023
The 6-foot-7, 225-pound Johnson played exclusively at the 4 spot this past season (per KenPom) for a San Diego State team that finished 32-7 and lost in the national championship to UConn. He averaged 7.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per outing while shooting 53.2% from the field and 26.2% from deep on 42 attempts.
Johnson attempted the sixth-most shots on the team but was arguably their best player in the title game vs. the Huskies, where he scored a team-high 14 points on 3/5 shooting from the field and 7/9 shooting on free throws to go with four boards.
It’s no secret UK is lacking experience and frontcourt depth heading into next season, especially if Oscar Tshiebwe departs, and there’s now the possibility for Aaron Bradshaw to head elsewhere.
Here’s a breakdown of Johnson’s game from The Athletic, which currently has him ranked as the 13th-best available transfer.
He has NBA athleticism and size. He’s able to guard any position and was often tasked with guarding the best opposing wing. His signature defensive performance was holding Alabama star Brandon Miller to just nine points in the Sweet 16, and none of those baskets came against Johnson. He did get lit up by Florida Atlantic’s Alijah Martin. He’s fast in a straight line but not as quick moving laterally. Offensively, he’s limited. He averaged 7.7 points, and while he’s built like a big wing, the Aztecs used him more like a traditional power forward. Most of his buckets came on dump-offs or duck-ins. He did finish with one of his best games, scoring 14 points in the national title game against UConn. He made both 3s he tried in the Final Four but was just 9-of-40 from deep the rest of the year. He’s shot 25.2 percent from beyond the arc for his career. He is a good finisher in the paint and has proven he can thrive in his role as a defender and dirty work guy.
Time for John Calipari to work his magic and lock this one up.
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