KyKy Tandy was a diehard UK fan growing up; still fighting for scholarship offer

As KyKy Tandy continues to shine on the AAU circuit, he’s hoping it leads to an offer from the Kentucky Wildcats.

The University Heights star, like most who grow up in the Bluegrass, would love to play at Rupp Arena for his college career at the most historical program in college basketball. But no matter how good a recruit may be, it’s never a given said recruit will get a scholarship offer from John Calipari.

After all, Calipari has UK in the running for many of the best high school prospects every year, so it’s always hard to find room for guys who may not quite be elite five-star recruits.

Tandy hopes to prove he’s more than worthy of an offer from the school he was a diehard fan of growing up, but he knows it’s a business.

“Kentucky is a well-known program — they always have a lot of pros,” Tandy told the Herald-Leader. “Cal is a great coach. And being a Kentucky kid, growing up, I used to be a Kentucky diehard fan. Now, I have so many schools that are on me, I really don’t know who to go to.”

While Tandy isn’t saying if he’s still bleeds blue the same way he did growing up, he did admit an offer from UK would be a blessing.

“It’d be a blessing if they offered me,” Tandy told SEC Country. “I’m from Kentucky, so usually Kentucky kids don’t get that offer. I’ve been working my butt off, and hopefully, I’ll get that offer.”

Tandy maintains that he’s a true point guard and not some combo guard that could end up at the 2 in college. He wants to run the show, and he’s out to prove he’s capable of doing that anywhere, including blue-blood programs like UK.

But while he has a world of potential, the recruiting services aren’t quite sold on him yet. Rivals has him ranked 83rd overall in the 2019 class. 247 Sports has him ranked 157th overall and the 23rd-best shooting guard. ESPN is a little higher on Tandy, ranking him as the 11th-best point guard.

It’s very rare for Calipari to extend scholarship offers to recruits ranked in the 100+ range, as he’s usually landing 4+ guys ranked in the top 25 every class.

But if these past few years are any indicator, it’s that Calipari needs to do better at finding more multi-year players to ensure he’s not losing his entire roster in just a 1-2 year span.

And while Tandy may be a multi-year player, he’s showing the potential to make an impact as early as his freshman season, wherever he is.

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