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Five Star Recruit, Robert Dillingham, Silently Committed to Kentucky Prior to His Commitment to N.C. State

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Photo via Instagram: @robwitdashifts

Top-10 guard of the 2023 class, Robert Dillingham, announced today that he would be staying in his home state of North Carolina to play for the N.C. State Wolfpack.

However, according to Joe Tipton of On3 Sports, it appears that this is after a silent commitment he made to Kentucky during his visit in late October. So what happened?

Easily Swayed

Dillingham’s recruitment has been, what you could call, “unique”. Since January, he has been considered a lock for North Carolina, Memphis, and then Kentucky before ultimately choosing N.C. State. With such big swings in his recruitment, it seems that Dillingham was easily swayed.

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This was true all the way up to the last minute as Dillingham’s crystal ball predictions changed from 100% Kentucky to 100% N.C. State in the 24-48 hours prior to his commitment.

Family Drama, Kanye West, & Adidas

In October, Dillingham made the decision to leave North Carolina and attend Kanye West’s Donda Academy. According to multiple and since confirmed reports, he made the move without his father’s permission.

His father, Donald Dillingham, claims that he did not give his son permission for the move and that the school paid off his mother in order to gain Robert’s attendance. Donald also claims he spoke to Shayla Scott, the Director of Athletics and Academics at the Donda Academy, who told Donald that they were instructed not to speak to him.

Not to mention, Kanye West’s Donda Academy is sponsored by Adidas and N.C. State is an Adidas school. Leading some to believe there may be a lucrative connection there.

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Conclusion

In addition to potential eligibility issues, some people believe that even with his commitment, Dillingham will never suit up for N.C. State and will opt to go the G-League Ignite or overseas route. However, if Dillingham does end up playing for N.C. State, he would only be the third top-10 recruit in program history, the other two being Dennis Smith Jr. and C.J. Leslie.

While he is talented, with the clouds around Dillingham’s recruitment, it appears that Kentucky may have dodged a bullet. With Cal and company’s track record in similar recruitments, they have my trust. With Kentucky in good position for many targets in the 2023 class, including No. 1 DJ Wagner, this isn’t a big loss.

While Dillingham’s recruitment has been cloudy and he didn’t choose the Cats, I wish him all the success in his future.

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BB Recruiting

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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Four-Star Guard Acaden Lewis Suddenly Decommits from Kentucky

Amidst a recent wave of positive recruiting news for Kentucky, the surprising decommitment of Acaden Lewis is an unfortunate wrench.

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2025 four-star point guard prospect Acaden Lewis has decommited from Kentucky.
UK Athletics

In a shocking, late at night turn of events, four-star freshman Acaden Lewis has decommitted from Kentucky.

Lewis, a 6’3” point guard out of Washington, D.C. first committed to the blue and white in November of last year, following an in-person visit with Mark Pope in his hometown.

Since then, he’s made multiple appearances in Rupp Arena, been featured in photo shoots with his fellow incoming recruits, and spoken on multiple occasions about his excitement to join the team for the 2025-26’ season.

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To say this development is surprising would be a serious understatement.

Lewis released a statement following the announcement, “This was an incredibly difficult decision, but I have to do what’s best for my future,” he said. “Thank you to Coach Pope and the whole Kentucky staff for all they’ve done for me so far.”

While the loss of Lewis is certainly disappointing, there is still much to look forward to next season for Kentucky, who maintain one of the highest rated transfer classes in the nation – and it likely isn’t finished.

To that point, if any reason can be derived immediately for Lewis’ decommitment, it may be found in the same place that Mark Pope and staff will be going to look for answers: the transfer portal.

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Top 10 Transfer Prospect, Former Wildcat Recruit Jayden Quaintance Commits to Kentucky

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2024 five-star big man Jayden Quaintance has commmitted to play basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats
UK Athletics

Two days into the week and two booms for the Kentucky Wildcats as Jayden Quaintance announced his commitment to Kentucky on Tuesday morning.

If the Quaintance name sounds familiar, it should. He was originally committed to play for the Cats out of high school last season as a five-star recruit. While he was interested in staying at Kentucky following John Calipari’s departure, even meeting with Mark Pope, he elected to play for Arizona State.

In his one season with the Sun Devils, Quaintance averaged 9.4 PPG, 7.9 RPG, and 2.6 BPG, and earned Big 12 All-Freshman and All-Defensive honors.

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The one concern for Quaintance is that he had surgery to repair a torn ACL, which could keep him out for the entire offseason and potentially into the season. That said, the expectation for a return is September, and at just 17 years old, there is so much untapped potential.

Get to know the newest Wildcat commit!

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