An inside look at Kentucky basketball's recruiting strategy

It’s been a busy week nationally on the college basketball recruiting front. And it’s possible that Kentucky will be on the wrong end of all the headlines amid this slew of high-profile commitments.

A trio of top 10 prospects who Mark Pope brought to campus for official visits this fall will be off the board by the weekend.

Lewis Uvwo, the No. 1 center in the 2027 class, committed to Providence on Wednesday afternoon. Point guard Reese Alston, the No. 9 overall player in the 247Sports rankings, picked LSU yesterday. Demarcus Henry — a 6-foot-7 wing and No. 4 in those 247 rankings — will decide between four schools (UK, Arkansas, Louisville and North Carolina) today.

The recent buzz has indicated that UNC is in the best position to land Henry, with rampant reports in the recruiting world that his pursuit has sparked a “bidding war” among suitors.

As is always the case in college basketball recruiting, context is key, especially in these days of seven-figure NIL offers and the behind-the-scenes maneuvering that accompanies that kind of cash.

On3.com reported this week that “some of the highest-ranked players (are) commanding packages approaching $5 million for a single season,” a number that raised eyebrows among fans and turned into a talker among analysts. “Not one player in this high school class is worth $5 million. Or even close to that,” longtime college basketball reporter Jeff Goodman posted on X.

There are many in the sport who share Goodman’s sentiment, even while acknowledging the fiscal reality of the situation.

Inside Kentucky Basketball confirmed this week that $5 million will indeed be the starting price for some top-ranked players in the 2027 class, with multiple sources in the recruiting world indicating that Henry’s camp is attempting to “set the market” at such a number, which could lead to even bigger paydays for high school stars that commit later in the cycle.

Beckham Black, CJ Rosser and Cayden Daughtry, ranked 1-2-3, respectively by 247Sports, all remain uncommitted, as do AJ Williams and Adan Diggs, the two high school seniors directly behind Henry in the 247Sports rankings. All five of those players have UK offers, and Rosser and Diggs have both been to Lexington for official visits this month.

There’s also an expectation in recruiting circles that some of the highest-ranked players in the 2028 class will switch to 2027 over the next few months and get an early start to their college careers (and those NIL paydays).

By the end of this cycle, it’s possible that several high school players in the 2027 class (including Henry) will have successfully negotiated NIL packages in the $5 million-plus range, according to multiple recruiting sources.

That kind of market — for players who haven’t started their senior season of high school yet — will have even the most deep-pocketed coaches in college basketball thinking long and hard about how they want to spend their money.

Inside Kentucky Basketball has been told that while UK will remain in the very top tier of college basketball payrolls in every recruiting cycle, the program is unlikely to engage in “bidding wars” for players in the 2027 high school class.

This group of prospects does not appear to have the type of collective talent at the top as last season’s freshman class, which featured AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer, Caleb Wilson and Darius Acuff Jr., among others. (No one from that group made the Final Four, it's also worth noting.)

Spending $5 million (or more) on a top player in the 2027 high school class would amount to 20% (or more) of the budget for even the biggest spenders in the sport. Trying to bring in two such players would obviously put double the dent in that salary cap.

On Kentucky’s end, the current thinking is that it would be more logical to save those resources for roster retention and the transfer portal, which UK expects to be the biggest and most talented yet, thanks to the NCAA’s recent move to a “5 for 5” eligibility structure and more clarity around who will be allowed to play (and who won’t) starting with the 2027-28 season.

That isn’t to say Pope and his staff won’t continue to pursue top-ranked high school players, but they’ll do so with the bigger picture of roster-building in mind.

“Right player, right situation, right price,” is how one source framed Kentucky’s view of 2027 prospects. UK was no longer recruiting Alston, for instance, at the time of his commitment, and the staff is committed to not remaining in individual negotiations that would jeopardize its ability to build the most formidable roster possible for next season.

The reality of Pope’s recruiting history is also at play here. The UK coach’s struggles with top-tier high school talent have been well documented, and the failed pursuit of Tyran Stokes in the 2026 cycle has been the most high-profile example.

On the other hand, Pope has been one of the most successful coaches in college basketball with the transfer portal since he took the UK job. Over the past three portal cycles, St. John’s is the only other program with a top five transfer class in each of those years, according to 247Sports.

The thinking on UK’s end is that, in most cases, it would be more logical to spend big in April or May on a proven, experienced transfer who could fill a specific need once the roster situation becomes more clear than to use the same amount of resources (or more) this fall on a high schooler who hasn’t even started his senior season yet.

And there’s plenty of uncertainty regarding Kentucky’s roster beyond this season.

Of the 14 players on the team, only backup center Franck Kepnang is in his final year of eligibility. Every other Wildcat would be able to come back for the 2027-28 season.

Given the current landscape of the sport, that’s highly unlikely to happen. There will certainly be outgoing transfers following this season. But as programs get deeper into this new NIL/portal era, there’s been even more of an emphasis on experience and retention, and Pope has several talented players on the current roster who might very well be back in school next year.

That list includes Malachi Moreno and Milan Momcilovic, two players who tested the NBA draft waters this year and hope to be in the league next season, though both could also be in a position to continue their development while earning more financial security by staying in college.

In an interview with Inside Kentucky Basketball last week, Momcilovic confirmed that playing two seasons at UK is a possibility.

“For sure,” he said. “I mean, obviously, there's a lot that can happen this year. So much is unknown. But I have another year now, a fifth year. So if this year doesn't work out as I plan, I can come back, or go somewhere else. But, you know, the goal is to go to the NBA next year, so that's what I'm planning on.”

As Momcilovic also noted there, it’s possible a fifth year in college could be spent elsewhere. That’s the reality of the sport in 2026, and it’s not changing anytime soon.

For Kentucky to build the best possible roster beyond this season, it’ll need to make sure the funds are there to lock up potential returnees like Momcilovic and Moreno, as well as others in the current rotation, including players who could be in for big raises (Mason Williams, perhaps?), with enough left over to go after the most talented needs in the transfer portal.

In a high school recruiting cycle seemingly lacking in surefire stars, spending those resources smartly might lead to handwringing in the fall, but it could be a shrewd move come the spring.

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Still targeting the 2027 class

To reiterate, Kentucky is still going to be active in the 2027 high school recruiting cycle. But there’s a sense that this signing class doesn’t need to be large in numbers to properly complement what Pope hopes to have elsewhere on the roster for next season.

Ryan Hampton, a 6-6 wing ranked No. 21 by 247Sports, is already committed. It’s possible that UK ends up with only three or four freshmen on the 2027-28 roster, and there have been recent developments regarding a couple of intriguing options.

Derek Terry caught up with the father of Benjamin Berrouet, a power forward who has rocketed to the No. 5 spot in the 247Sports rankings for 2028 but has long been a candidate to move to the 2027 class. Berrouet took an official visit to UK last weekend, and his dad said that trip “set the standard” for his recruitment moving forward. (You’re going to want to read his comments.)

And last week, Inside Kentucky Basketball had a story recapping the recent visit of 7-5 center Cherif Millogo, who could very well vault to top-10 status in the 2027 class. UK appears well-positioned to land his commitment (a national analyst at On3 put in a pro-Kentucky prediction earlier this week), though he has scheduled visits to BYU and Southern Cal, too.

Berrouet and Millogo will be two intriguing players to watch in the coming weeks and months. If Pope could add a duo like that to what he’s already got with Hampton, the resulting class wouldn’t rank No. 1 in the country, but it could be the perfect complement to Kentucky’s cast of returnees and transfers next season.

Be sure to keep up with the biggest updates on our "latest recruiting news" section.

Other notes

UK basketball trivia: Alex Wilkins, a Boston native, is the 10th player in program history with a Massachusetts hometown. Can you name the Wildcats’ only 1,000-point scorer from Massachusetts?
As referenced in yesterday’s story about Zoom Diallo and his exhibition game struggles, ESPN dropped its list of the top 100 players in college basketball earlier this week, and three Wildcats made the cut. Diallo was No. 92 on the list, preceded by Malachi Moreno at No. 75 and Milan Momcilovic at No. 18. Other intriguing names on the list: Florida’s Denzel Aberdeen at No. 95, Missouri’s Mark Mitchell at No. 21 and Kansas freshman Tyran Stokes at No. 4. The two players directly ahead of Stokes are both SEC returnees (Vanderbilt’s Tyler Tanner at No. 3 and Florida’s Tommy Haugh at No. 2), with Michigan State point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. taking the top spot.
To the earlier point regarding the importance of roster retention, eight of ESPN’s top 10 players are returnees to their schools from last season, with the only exceptions being Stokes and Duke transfer John Blackwell at No. 8. The full top 100 is worth a read. There are also only three freshmen in the top 30, with five first-year transfers. The other 22 in the top 30 are all players who decided to return to the same school they played for last season, a situation current Cats like Momcilovic, Moreno, Diallo, Alex Wilkins, Ousmane N'Diaye, Kam Williams, Braydon Hawthorne, Mason Williams (and others) could be in after this season.
Despite Mark Pope not showing off his entire offense this preseason, Milan Momcilovic led Kentucky in scoring in all three exhibition games. He had 16 points against Little Rock, 15 points against Texas Tech (tying Malachi Moreno for top honors) and 19 points in the overtime victory over UCF this week. Momcilovic was 9 for 20 from 3-point range in those three wins, a 45% hit rate on 6.7 attempts per game. And that’s without UK doing everything possible to get him good looks from the perimeter, which you’ll see more of in the coming weeks. In case you missed it, check out Momcilovic’s full 1-on-1 interview with Inside Kentucky Basketball, a conversation that dives deep into his mindset entering this season.
Pope provided an injury update on Kam Williams (foot) Wednesday night, saying the staff would be “incredibly cautious” with his recovery while confirming details of our report from earlier in the week regarding his current practice status. “He's been in 5-on-0 in practice right now. He’ll maybe have a little bit of live work … in practice on Friday, but we're going to continue to go really slow. He's an incredibly valuable piece to us, and we're going to do everything humanly possible to be cautious and get him back healthy. … As this team grows, at some point Kam’s going to jump on. And he’s going to give us another huge boost.” Pope is scheduled for another press conference today at 10 a.m.
The Basket Under Review website (which does great work) announced its All-Name Teams for the 2026-27 season, and Zoom Diallo was a third-team selection. The first-teamers this season: Tennessee Rainwater (Mercyhurst), Always Wright (UT Rio Grande Valley), All Wright (Loyola Marymount), Phat Phat Brooks (Central Michigan) and Yaak Yaak (Oklahoma).
“Zoom” is a nickname that stems from the middle part of his given name, Vazoumana (pronounced “Vah-ZOO-mahna”), which was his maternal grandfather’s name. Diallo was born in Georgia and grew up in Washington state, but both of his parents were born in the Ivory Coast. The speedy point guard has been going by “Zoom” since he was 6 years old. “I will love you guys to keep coming with ‘Zoom.’ Keep it as ‘Zoom.’ My real name is Vazoumana, but I keep Zoom as my basketball name, because I feel like it just fits me,” he said earlier this year. “... That’s the name that I love on the court, and I feel like it’s brought me to this point.”
One more non-basketball note: Coach Pope, a 2-year-old colt trained by Kenny McPeek, will be running in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at 4:55 p.m. today at Keeneland. (The race will be shown on USA Network and Peacock.) The son of star stallion Tapit is the 4-1 second choice on the morning line in the race, which is down to just six entries after a couple of scratches. The favorite, Hughes, is trained by Bob Baffert.
UK’s practice session today is scheduled to end around 4 p.m., and Mark Pope said after Wednesday’s game that he and his wife, Lee Anne, are planning to be at Keeneland for the race. The couple also watched Coach Pope race at the Lexington track earlier this month. If Coach Pope keeps it up on the track (and stays healthy), he could be in line for next year’s Kentucky Derby. McPeek, who grew up in Lexington and is a UK basketball fan, won the 2024 Derby with Mystik Dan.
Trivia answer: Wayne Turner, who is also a Boston native, scored 1,170 points (and won two national championships) during his UK career, making him the only member of the 1,000-point club from Massachusetts.

Thanks to everyone who has signed up for the Inside Kentucky Basketball newsletter so far, and a major thank you to all who have shown their support with a premium subscription to the website. The numbers have been growing each day. Keep spreading the word. And stay tuned next week, which will feature a roundtable discussion with John Clay and Derek Terry as the three of us look ahead to the regular season, which starts Tuesday night in Rupp Arena, where the Cats will take on Manhattan to tip off Year 3 of the Pope era. We have a lot of good stuff in store for the coming weeks. Thanks for subscribing!

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