Calipari travels to James Wiseman territory ahead of Memphis recruiting visit

Three days before James Wiseman is scheduled to begin his official visit to Memphis — the final such trip of his recruitment — John Calipari popped up in the city, perhaps to put Kentucky on the mind of the No. 1-ranked recruit going into this weekend.

Calipari tweeted a photo of himself outside Memphis wing joint Ching’s Hot Wings on Tuesday night following an in-home visit with Wiseman.

It’s been a busy week so far for Calipari, who met with five-star forward Matthew Hurt in Minnesota on Monday and was at La Lumiere School in Indiana — home to UK targets Keion Brooks and Isaiah Stewart — earlier Tuesday.

Wiseman, ranked No. 1 nationally in the 2019 class by 247Sports and ESPN, has already taken his official visit to Kentucky and has also been on official visits to Florida State, Kansas and Vanderbilt.

The Nashville native moved to Memphis last summer to play for Penny Hardaway at Memphis East High School, and he’s a senior there this fall. This weekend’s trip to the nearby University of Memphis will be the final official visit of his recruitment, and there’s a chance Wiseman will be ready to make a college decision in time for the early signing period, which starts Nov. 14.

Hardaway, of course, is now the head coach at Memphis, and he’s made his former player the No. 1 priority for his first full recruiting class. Wiseman was also the first prospect from the 2019 class to earn a scholarship offer from Calipari, who has visited him several times over the past couple of years.

Memphis currently holds a majority of the predictions on Wiseman’s 247Sports Crystal Ball page, but national analysts have said in recent weeks that his recruitment remains too close to call, with Kentucky and Memphis seen as the clear co-favorites for the talented 7-footer.

This story was originally published October 23, 2018 at 9:53 PM.