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BB Recruiting

2022 Nike EYBL Louisville Session Interview: Tre Johnson

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Photo By Tristan Pharis

While John Calipari does not like to show much interest until the summer of a recruit going from their junior to senior year, however, Tre Johnson is a top-five recruit in 2024 that Kentucky has expressed a lot of interest in.

Johnson has created a reputation as a pure shooting guard and an elite shooter, something that Kentucky will always welcome. With such a beautiful and fluid shooting form, it is easy to see why.

On the weekend, Johnson was one of the leading scorers of the Louisville Nike EYBL session, averaging 19.6 points on an efficient 48% shooting from the field and 47% shooting from three, while also averaging nearly 4 made threes per game.

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To add to that, Johnson is also comfortable utilizing his mid-range game. As for areas of improvement, Johnson does need to become a more confident ball handler and assist-maker, which will round out his all-around game.

Johnson has called Kentucky his “dream school”, and looks up to former UK guard, Tyrese Maxey, which puts Kentucky in the mix off principle this early on. Let’s recap what Johnson had to say about Kentucky and more in my interview with him.

You’ve said that Kentucky is one of the schools that you have been hearing a lot from lately. What have those communications been like?

“It’s been good just knowing that Kentucky is reaching out. They are saying that I am a player that can fit their style of play. It’s also good knowing that I can go to a place like Kentucky and be effective.”

How has the departure of Jai Lucas affected your recruitment? Who has taken over?

“No, but that is who I was mainly talking to. When he left, I started talking to another assistant coach, but I am not sure who it was, my dad didn’t tell me that.”

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You’ve called Kentucky your “dream school”, why is that and what makes it so attractive?

“That was my favorite school when I was younger. I always wanted to go to Kentucky when I was younger. Then, Tyrese Maxey, we are from the same place, and I just looked up to him and wanted to go where he went. Right now, I am open to anywhere.”

Are you close with Tyrese (Maxey)? Has he talked to you about Kentucky?

“We don’t talk a lot, but we talk on occasion. He hasn’t said anything, we try not to get into that.”

You have said that you would rather receive constructive criticism than to be praised for how good you are, so what are you working to improve on?

Improving on my team defense. Helping rebound, even when our big man is there or is not there.

What factors are you looking at to help you make a decision?

“A place where they give their guards freedom. Let their guards play and let them do what they do in practice. A place that plays winning basketball, a team that wants to win.”

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Does NIL play a large factor in your recruitment?

“No, not really. NIL is not the big picture. The big picture to me is to go to the NBA.”


Get up to speed with this breakdown on Kentucky’s latest target, Tre Johnson.

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BB Recruiting

Top 20 Prospect Taylen Kinney Set To Visit Kentucky

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James Weber | The Enquirer

Taylen Kinney, one of the top guards in the 2026 class and the No. 1 point guard in Kentucky, will take an official visit with the Wildcats beginning on June 24.

The Newport, Kentucky native has been inserted in a bit of a bidding war with Louisville and other premier schools after his official visit with the Cardinals, but of course the true recruiting powerhouse had to cast a line in hope of a bite.

KSR’s Jack Pilgrim caught a video of Kinney working with Mark Pope one-on-one on the morning of June 17 at the USA U19 Training Camp in Colorado Springs.

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A picture of Kinney, along with Malachi Moreno and Jasper Johnson, two of Kentucky’s incoming freshman on this year’s squad, came out of the camp. Tyran Stokes, the No. 1 player in the class of 2026, who already took a visit to Kentucky recently, was also shown in the picture. All four players are Kentucky natives.

Kinney is a priority for Kentucky, and Pope planting the idea of being a Wildcat in his mind this past weekend certainly builds the hype of his commitment being a future reality.

However, we can’t act like Pat Kelsey hasn’t already beat Pope to the punch, and it may be too late to change Kinney’s mind on being a Cardinal.

“I probably talk to coach Kelsey twice a week,” Kinney said. “He talks to my parents multiple times a week. I talk to the whole staff all of the time.”

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He later added on some words that no Wildcat fan would want to hear.

“They (Louisville’s staff) just told me that I was their guy,” Kinney said. “I fit perfectly into their system, and there’s no other school that I fit better into than them.

A common member of Big Blue Nation would likely think “yeah alright, wait until you get that Kentucky treatment,” and with the climate of today’s recruiting trail, who knows what can happen.

It will likely be a long time before the star guard makes an official decision, but who doesn’t like a good back-and-forth between two rival programs. The bell has already rung, and round one goes to the Cardinals, but the Wildcats are coming out swinging for round two.

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No. 1 Ranked Recruit Takes Official Visit to Kentucky

The top-ranked recruit in the nation, Tyran Stokes, took his official visit to Kentucky following a prior delay.

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Tyran Stokes takes his official visit to Kentucky.
Mark J. Rebilas | Imagn Images

Being from Louisville doesn’t necessarily make you a cardinal, and Mark Pope has set out to prove that in the biggest possible way.

The top-ranked overall recruit in next year’s class, Tyran Stokes, officially took a visit to Lexington on Sunday, June 8. This comes in lieu of many rumors that he’d canceled his visit altogether due to frustration with fans trying to dig for information online.

Last month in a cryptic post on X, Stokes said, “Why can’t y’all give a kid some privacy”. As curious as that was, especially given the proximity to his originally planned visit to Kentucky, it seems that the true issue had no bearing on his choice to hear Coach Pope’s plea. 

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And, as Kentucky fans now know, sometimes that’s all it takes to get a guy in blue and white.

The Louisville native, at 6’7, 230, has become widely renowned for his strong slashing ability as a multi-threat scorer on the wing. Stokes is the sort of player that, nobody who you already have on your team, you make room for him. He’s got an intangible build made for the big leagues, and he’s not even out of high school yet.

Stokes is the kind of guy that’d have NBA scouts sitting court side in Rupp Arena. While that level of national buzz isn’t always a good thing, it’s hard to underscore the possibility, and excitement, of the top recruit in the nation committing to the Cats come 2026.

In the very least, Kentucky is in the race, alongside Kansas and Louisville as heavy pursuers. It’s never too early to look ahead, and, as usual, Pope and staff are doing just that with the biggest names in the game.

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Kentucky Earns Commitment From European Big Andrija Jelavic

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ABA League j.t.d./Dragana Stjepanovic

Earlier today, Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats received the commitment from Andrija Jelavic, a 6-foot-11 big from Croatia.

As first reported by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, Jelavic is one of the most highly regarded European prospects that is taking his talent to the NCAA.

Soon to be 21 years old, Jelavic averaged 10.8 points per game on 60% shooting from the field to go along with 7.4 rebounds per game for Mega Superbet, the same club that NBA Champion and three-time MVP Nikola Jokic played for.

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As a shock to most, who were expecting Pope’s next commit to be a guard of some sorts, international players can now sign lucrative NIL deals. Kentucky, along with several of the elite colleges, are now in the European market. 

Jelavic, with shades of current European big men, can do just about everything on the court. He can shoot, dribble, pass, finish at the rim, etc. With a very relevant comparison, Jelavic plays almost perfectly in the replacement role of Andrew Carr. 

His commitment now makes him the fifth member of Pope’s additions this offseason, joining Kam Williams, Jaland Lowe, Mouhamed Dioubate and Jayden Quaintance. 

With a 7’2” wingspan, joining an already impressive Kentucky frontcourt, it’s safe to say for certain that this new team will not lack in that department. 

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Next year’s roster was loaded with talent already, but now with the addition of Jelavic, lots of questions are arising: Who will start? How many more players is Pope going to add? What will happen with the walk-ons? 

There’s plenty to think about for Pope and his staff before the season starts, but like he said back when he introduced himself to Big Blue Nation, “We’re here to win banners.” He’s going to make the moves he thinks will do just that for the Wildcats. 

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