Major Kentucky basketball targets are big movers in latest recruiting rankings
A few of the most recent additions to Kentucky’s basketball recruiting board were also among the biggest risers in the updated Rivals.com rankings for the 2021 class released Monday.
Hunter Sallis — the Wildcats’ newest point guard target — moved up five spots to the No. 6 position overall, putting him one spot behind longtime UK target Jaden Hardy and making him the No. 1 point guard in the class of 2021, according to Rivals.
Going into the summer, Rivals.com already ranked Sallis the highest of any of the recruiting services at No. 11. 247Sports recently moved Sallis from No. 25 to No. 6 overall, also making him the No. 1 point guard in its 2021 rankings.
Rivals.com national analyst Corey Evans told the Herald-Leader this summer that comparisons between Sallis — a versatile, 6-foot-5 guard from Omaha, Neb. — and former UK point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are apt.
“Just because of his size and his length due to a growth spurt, and his ball skills, and his wiggle,” Evans said. “Hunter is definitely more athletic than Shai was. He’s more explosive, has more wiggle to his game. And he might be more of a scorer than Shai was.
“Not many have improved, if any in his class, at such a rate as Hunter Sallis. And he’s a very easygoing, fun-loving, high-character kid. And someone that I think is a no-brainer Kentucky kind of guy.”
North Carolina and Kansas were seen as potential favorites for Sallis before UK extended a scholarship offer last month. Evans wrote last week that he would now consider Kentucky to be the leader in Sallis’ recruitment.
Also making a big jump toward the top of the new Rivals.com rankings was Texas forward Daimion Collins, who moved from No. 20 to No. 10 overall and gained five-star designation in the process.
Collins — a skinny but highly athletic 6-9 prospect from Atlanta, Texas — was heavily recruited by former Longhorns assistant coach Jai Lucas, who recently joined UK’s staff, and was being pursued by Wildcats assistant Joel Justus even before the Lucas hire was made official.
Oklahoma and Texas are likely to be Kentucky’s biggest competition for Collins, who might be the most athletic frontcourt player in the 2021 class.
Another relatively new recipient of a UK scholarship offer is former Louisville commitment Bryce Hopkins, who moved up four spots to No. 30 overall in the updated Rivals.com rankings. Kentucky is widely seen as the frontrunner for Hopkins, who visited Lexington over the weekend. The versatile, 6-6 small forward from the Chicago area was not permitted to meet with the coaching staff or tour the basketball facilities on that trip — due to current NCAA recruiting restrictions related to COVID-19 — but he and his family were able to get a feel for UK’s campus, and a college announcement could be coming in the next month or so.
The Wildcats’ only 2021 commitment so far — Seattle point guard Nolan Hickman — also made a major jump in the new Rivals rankings, moving from No. 76 to No. 52 overall.
Evans told the Herald-Leader when Hickman committed last month that Rivals might have had him a little under-ranked. He expects him to be an instant-impact contributor for the Cats.
“He’s only gotten better and better,” Evans said. “I love his size. I love his length. I love his physicality that he goes about playing the game. So I just cannot see it not working out for him at Kentucky.”
Longtime UK target Patrick Baldwin Jr. remained in the No. 1 spot atop the Rivals.com rankings, though the Cats are seen as long shots behind Duke and Milwaukee, where his father is the head coach.
Hardy — a 6-5 combo guard from the Las Vegas area — remained in the No. 5 spot. Kentucky has long been seen as a leader, but UCLA and other Pac-12 schools have gained ground in recent months, and the possibility of a jump straight to the G League looms.
The only other 2021 prospect with a UK scholarship offer is Moussa Diabate, a standout frontcourt player for IMG Academy in Florida. He dropped two spots to No. 29 overall.
The one-week early signing period for men’s basketball recruits is scheduled to begin Nov. 11.
This story was originally published September 14, 2020 at 1:25 PM.
