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2023 Five Star Wing Set to Make Decision Tonight, Kentucky in the Top Two

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Photo via UK Athletics

Mookie Cook, a 6-foot-7, 200-pound, wing in the class of 2023 has announced that will be making his college decision tonight at 6:00 PM ET, per Joe Tipton.

Cook is down between Gonzaga, Kentucky, and Oregon, with reports listing Kentucky and Oregon as the top two. However, it looks like the Ducks may be in a better position, receiving the only two crystal ball predictions for Cook back in early March.

As a Portland native, Oregon is the hometown school and that is a big draw. Cook’s coach, Ed Gipson, iterated that in an interview with Kentucky Sports Radio, saying, “If Mookie Cook steps on campus, even when he goes on his visit out there, that’s going to be a real thing. You know what I’m saying? Everybody would go crazy about it.”

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On the Kentucky side, Cook played at AZ Compass Prep in Arizona, the same team that the TyTy Washington played for in high school, and is close with the Wildcat guard. Washington and his family were even Cook’s hosts during his official visit to Kentucky back in January, with Cook citing Washington as “big bro”.

When asked about Kentucky’s pitch, Cook explained to KSR, “It just speaks for itself, Kentucky is Kentucky. They want me to come there and have a great legacy.”

Another thing to note is that there have been rumors of reclassification, but Gipson and Cook have said that is not seriously being considered “as of now”.

Cook is a consensus top-five recruit and whichever team is able to land Cook they are getting an elite wing and one that has admittedly modeled his game after two of the best two-way players in the NBA, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard.

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Back in December of 2020, the consensus five-star recruit Cook was asked to give a scouting report of himself by Stock Risers, and this is what he had to say.

“I play both sides of the ball, offense, and defense. I can facilitate, I’m very versatile at 6-foot-7, I can guard any position 1-4, run the court hard and can shoot the three as well as bring the ball up. All-around game and I’m a team player.”

Who will come out on top? Oregon, the hometown school, or Kentucky with the teammate and family connections? We will find out tonight at halftime (estimated 6 PM ET) of the Geico Nationals on ESPNU.

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BB Recruiting

Kentucky Has Contacted Nation’s Leading Scorer, Four-Star Transfer Jaron Pierre Who Is “Definitely” Interested in the Cats

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Jacksonville State transfer Jaron Pierre has been contacted by Kentucky.
Jacksonville State Athletics

There are more than a thousand players in the transfer portal, meaning names are flying left and right. As of April 1st, Kentucky has one commitment in Kam Williams (Tulane), and is projected to land top 25 transfer Magoon Gwath (San Diego State).

That said, the Kentucky staff has been in contact with more than a dozen players, and there is another notable player to add to that list.

KY Insider can report that Kentucky has contacted Jaron Pierre from Jacksonville State. Pierre is currently a four-star transfer prospect and ranked as the 34th ranked prospect in 247Sports‘ transfer portal rankings.

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At Jacksonville State last season, Pierre scored more points than anyone else in college basketball (777 points), averaging 21.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.8 assists while shooting 38.2% from 3-point range (9.0 attempts per game). He scored 30 points or more in six games, and only had one game where he did not score in double digits. His impressive play earned him Conference USA Player of the Year honors.

Pierre also had prior stops at Southern Miss and Wichita State, where he spent two years at each school, and will be going into his sixth season of college basketball. Pierre has also declared for the NBA Draft, but is not currently projected on any mock drafts.

While still early in his recruitment, Pierre tells KY Insider that he is “definitely” interested in Kentucky, but no Zoom meeting or visit has been scheduled.

“I love it Big Blue Nation,” Pierre said of the Kentucky program. He also really liked what Mark Pope was able to do in his first season in Lexington. “He was able to pick up right where it left off.”

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The level of competition is always a question when evaluating a mid-major talent, but Pierre’s athleticism jumps off the page and a 38.2% clip from three on nine attempts per game is nothing to slight at.

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Kentucky Receives First Transfer Commitment From Top 25 Prospect, “Not Many People Get Opportunities Like This”

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Kentucky transfer Kam Williams prepares to shoot.

While all the attention is on Kentucky’s matchup with Tennessee in the Sweet Sixteen, the transfer portal officially opened on Monday and the staff has been hard at work.

Already tossing a wide net, reaching out to nearly a dozen guys in the past few days, the Cats have reeled in their first commitment from Top 25 ranked (247Sports), four-star transfer Kam Williams from Tulane.

With a 6-8, 190-pound frame, Williams has good size. What caught the staff’s eye is his ELITE shooting ability, shooting better than 41 percent this past season and that includes 17 threes made beyond 25 feet. He excels best in catch-and-shoot situations, where he ranks in the 94th percentile.

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Williams received interest from many schools in addition to Kentucky, such as Florida, Louisville, and St. John’s among others. Why did Williams commit to Kentucky so quickly?

“Not many people get opportunities like this, so I wanted to pull the trigger fast,” Williams told ESPN. “More people are waiting to fill that spot, so I had to take advantage.”

“My dream is to play in the NBA. Kentucky’s culture and background shows that they care about their players, especially developing them into the best players they can be.”

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Kentucky Named a Finalist for Five Star, Top 5 NBA Prospect Nate Ament

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2025 top five prospect Nate Ament on his visit to Kentucky.
UK Athletics

Mark Pope has received three top-35 commitments in his first high school recruiting class, including two high 4-star commits in Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno.

However, his first top-10 prospect still eludes him after missing out on Caleb Wilson last month… at least for now.

Over the last few weeks, Pope and his staff have focused heavily on top-five prospect Nate Ament.

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Ament, the second-ranked power forward in the 2025 class, cut his list down to five schools earlier this week: Duke, Louisville, Tennessee, Arkansas, and the Kentucky Wildcats.

The 6-foot-9 prospect has visited each of them except Arkansas over the last five months, with a decision expected in the next month or so. Where does each program stand?

According to Joe Tipton of On3, Louisville and Duke have “positioned themselves” the best in this recruitment, giving Pat Kesley and the Cardinals a slight lead. However, there is still time, and one thing that could shake things up the most is NIL, reported to be one of Ament’s biggest priorities.

Elsewhere at On3, Jamie Shaw did his own update, where he said this could be down to a Kentucky vs. Louisville battle.

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“Speaking with sources at this point in time it does sound like there is a split room around Nate Ament with Duke, Louisville, and Kentucky. With the intel I am currently getting, I would not be surprised to see this ultimately come down to a Kentucky and Louisville battle,” Shaw wrote, later adding that a decision could come in the next few weeks.

Ament is fresh off a visit to Kentucky, where he saw Rupp Arena at its best as the Wildcats completed the season sweep of Tennessee. That being his most recent visit, along with Pope visiting for Ament’s Senior night, the hope is it made a lasting impact, but will it be enough?

Time will tell, but the Cats are a legitimate contender to land Ament.

Be sure to read Shaw’s update here.

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Also posted on A Sea of Blue.

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