E.J. Montgomery officially signs with Kentucky Wildcats

On April 9th, E.J. Montgomery shoved the pendulum of basketball recruiting back toward the Kentucky Wildcats by announcing his intentions to play his college basketball in Lexington.

Today, he made that official by signing his letter of intent.

By picking Kentucky over the Duke Blue Devils, assuming Kentucky adds one of the many point guards considering reclassification, Montgomery took one of John Calipari’s lowest ranking recruiting classes and made it one that may challenge for the top spot.

Rumors from the McDonald’s All-American Game, which happened just a week and a half before Montgomery’s announcement, suggest that interactions with certain Duke signees at the event helped Montgomery decide to join the Wildcats.

While he was expected to take a few more visits before making a decision this spring, a home visit with Calipari sealed the deal.

“He just felt like that was the place for him to be. He didn’t feel like he needed to take any more visits,” Montgomery’s father told Chris Fisher of CatsPause.com. “They just talked about how we can come in and they’re going to develop him and help him achieve his dreams.”

Montgomery will be the first Wildcat since Jamal Murray in 2015-2016 to wear No. 23, a number often associated with NBA superstar Anthony Davis.

Montgomery’s path is similar to that of Davis, in that he was a guard who hit a growth spurt going into high school. Because of that, he says he has modeled his game after Davis.

Kentucky fans sure hope he brings some Davis-like magic to Lexington. We will find out on November 6th when the Wildcats face off against Duke to kick off the season.