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Are Jaden Mcdaniels and RJ Hampton Dropping Hints on Social Media?

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Jaden McDaniels and RJ Hampton are the two highest ranked recruits of the 2019 class yet to make their college decision, and both have Kentucky as one of their finalists.

Social media has become an emerging tool for recruits to use to get exposure, recruit other recruits to team up, and speak to current and former players. Now, while it is important not to over analyze things, recruits often send subtle hints with their social media activity. Let’s take a closer look at McDaniels’ and Hampton’s activity.

Jaden McDaniels

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Jaden McDaniels and his camp have been very quiet during the recruiting process. Many believed due to the quietness, McDanels preferred to stay close to home and would attend Washington. However, many believe that is now a two horse race between Kentucky and Washington, with the Wildcats now being the favorite.

Sources have reported that McDaniels hopes to make a decision in the next two weeks, and more Kentucky talk has emerged including the Wildcats taking over McDaniels 24/7 Crystal Ball prediction with 85%, including a pick from recruiting guru, Evan Daniels.

In the past week, McDaniels has followed other Kentucky commits Dontaie Allen and Khalil Whitney, and already follows Tyrese Maxey,

McDaniels also follows the official Kentucky men’s basketball account and notable Kentucky alumni John Wall, Demarcus Cousins, Tyler Ulis, De’Aron Fox, Bam Adebayo, and Malik Monk amongst many others.

As for Washington, McDaniels follows very few Washington related accounts including alumnus Isaiah Thomas, transfer and former Wildcat Quade Green, and current players Nahziah Carter and Noah Neubauer.

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RJ Hampton

RJ Hampton was originally a part of the 2020 recruiting class, but after reclassifying in late April, Hampton has become a top-5 recruit in this year’s upcoming class.

Hampton’s final list consists of Kentucky, Kansas, Memphis, and Texas Tech. Many believe that Kentucky had the best shot to land Hampton if he had stayed in the 2020 class due to Kentucky’s loaded frontcourt next season. However, Kentucky is still in the mix, and Hampton’s final decision will likely come down to Kentucky, Kansas, and Memphis.

Hampton notably replied to Barstool Kansas on Twitter this past weekend.

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Also, Hampton has liked several comments from several incoming, current, and former players from Kentucky (Jarred Vanderbilt & Johnny Juzang), Kansas (Devon Dotson), and Memphis (James Wiseman & Lester Quinones).

Hampton’s brother Ry, only follows one player with any connections to RJ’s final list, Kentucky commit Tyrese Maxey.

Like I previously said, it is important not to put too much stock in things regarding social media, however, it does give us a closer insight and confirms what many already believe; that Kentucky is the favorite for Jaden McDaniels and it’s a three horse race for RJ Hampton.

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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BB Recruiting

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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