He might be the nation’s No. 1 center. Could he also be Kentucky’s next star big man?
READ MORE
UK basketball recruiting updates
Ben Roberts and Cameron Drummond of the Lexington Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com are producing several stories and videos analyzing last weekend’s Nike EYBL basketball recruiting showcase in Louisville. Click below to access all of their coverage this week.
Expand All
It was perhaps the biggest game so far this year on the grassroots basketball schedule.
On one side, DJ Wagner, the longtime No. 1-ranked prospect in the 2023 class, playing in Louisville while at the center of an epic Kentucky vs. U of L recruiting battle. On the other side, Bronny James, a consensus top-50 national recruit, the son of NBA megastar LeBron James, and perhaps the most famous high school basketball player in the country.
Fans at the Kentucky Exposition Center flocked to Court 1 to see the matchup, many arriving hours before the scheduled tip-off to make sure they had a seat for the spectacle. By pregame warmups, the standing-room-only sections of the crowd were 10 or more people deep, folks craning their necks with curiosity, trying to get a glimpse of Wagner vs. Bronny.
Somebody else stole the show.
That was Aaron Bradshaw, a 7-footer who plays alongside Wagner with the New Jersey Scholars, and a prospect who — this time last year — wasn’t particularly well-known outside the most diehard recruiting circles.
Plenty of basketball fans are learning his name now.
Bradshaw, who is also teammates with Wagner at Camden (N.J.) High School, didn’t play at all his freshman year and was able to compete in only a handful of games as a sophomore, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So, this past season — his junior year — was really his first full campaign.
He caught plenty of eyes as that season progressed, and he’s captured even more attention since the start of the Nike travel season in April.
247Sports analyst Travis Branham said Bradshaw’s game has taken a big jump in recent months. In his second game of the Nike season, Bradshaw went for 15 points, 10 rebounds and eight blocked shots. Through 13 games this spring, he’s averaging 13.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots per game, and he’s helped the Scholars compile an 11-2 record.
The blossoming big man is also efficient, going 60.3 percent from the floor and shooting a fairly amazing 81.8 percent from the free-throw line.
“He’s taken a good jump, and, honestly, he’s in the conversation to be the top big man in the class with consistent and continued play like that,” Branham said.
Those things were on full display in what was supposed to be the “Wagner vs. Bronny Game.”
Wagner was good, not great. James struggled. Bradshaw ended up with 21 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks and two steals. He went 8-for-11 from the floor and 5-for-6 on free throws. He worked hard on and off the ball. He clogged up the lane defensively. He battled relentlessly for rebounds. And he came up with key plays and big buckets down the stretch, leading the Scholars to a 67-57 victory.
Listed at 210 pounds, Bradshaw is still pretty thin, but he uses his length so well, showing a natural sense of what to do and when to do it. He has a quick-twitch ability when attempting blocked shots and swiping at opposing guards who try to drive into the paint. He also has soft hands and a nice shooting touch, clearly just as comfortable catching the ball on the run and streaking to the basket to make a play as he is spotting up for practically undefendable 15-footers.
“There are so many things he can do,” Branham said.
In last week’s update to the 247Sports player rankings for the 2023 class, Bradshaw was placed No. 21 nationally, making him the No. 2 center in a group of rising seniors that appears to be relatively short on dominant big men.
Recruiting Aaron Bradshaw
Among those who have clearly been impressed with Bradshaw’s trajectory over the past year: John Calipari.
With Kentucky’s coaching staff keeping such close tabs on Wagner, they’ve seen plenty of Bradshaw during the high school and AAU seasons. Following the first April evaluation period, Calipari extended a UK scholarship offer to Bradshaw, and the Wildcats have stayed among the schools recruiting him the hardest.
New Jersey Scholars team officials did not allow Bradshaw or Wagner (or any other player in the program) to be interviewed following their games in Louisville over the weekend, so Bradshaw didn’t get a chance to speak to the latest on his recruitment.
He did confirm, however, that he’ll be taking an official visit to Kentucky in the near future, likely in the next couple of weeks. Recently, he narrowed his recruitment to UK, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Oklahoma State, UCLA and the G League.
Bradshaw has also said that he’d like to have a college decision made by the start of his senior season of high school, a plan that would allow him to sign with the program of his choice in November and play his final prep campaign free from the stresses of the recruiting trail.
The word on the sidelines over the weekend was that Kentucky would have a very good shot to land his commitment, once that decision time comes. (It’s also been established that, while Bradshaw and Wagner could very well play together again in college, their recruitments are not necessarily intertwined. So if the Wildcats miss on one star player, they could still get the other).
Asked about Bradshaw, one knowledgeable recruiting insider standing courtside Saturday positioned his arm at a 45-degree angle and made the motion of an airplane taking off. Others who have been in the game for a long time raised their eyebrows at the mention of his name.
The consensus: he’s going to be really good. It’s just a matter of when he unlocks that full potential.
Long associated with dominant freshman big men, Calipari’s Kentucky program hasn’t really had one since Bam Adebayo, relying the past five seasons on a mixture of transfers, upperclassmen, and not-quite-ready newcomers at the position. The approach, often a result of missing out on the very top high school centers, has brought mixed results.
Might that change if the Cats can bring in Bradshaw?
“I think it’s still too early to make that call right now,” Branham said. “Does he have the talent to be? Yes. But does he have the mentality, the motor, the aggressiveness? All of the things that come with the responsibility of something like that — it’s just too early to tell. Again, something that we’re going to be keeping a close eye on is: how consistent is this production going to be? And how impactful is he going to continue to be on the basketball court?”
What’s happened so far this spring is a good sign of where Bradshaw might be headed. He’s had his on-court motor and aggressiveness questioned in the past, but there wasn’t much hint of passivity over the weekend.
Another good sign? AAU basketball warmups aren’t exactly known as a breeding ground of fundamental basketball. Especially at events like this — when kids play five games in 48 hours — stuff tends to get a little sloppy before tip-off. Off-balance shots, wacky dunk lines and players going through the motions are pretty par for the course. That’s eve more true when college coaches aren’t in attendance, as was the case this past weekend.
Before Saturday night’s showcase game, however, Bradshaw spent his time before tip-off working on post moves, footwork, and some basic drills away from the basket that might expand his versatility. Watching it all was New Jersey Scholars team director Pervis Ellison, the former Louisville basketball star, Final Four MVP, and No. 1 pick in the 1989 NBA Draft.
Ellison knows Bradshaw still has a long way to go. He’s also seen quite a bit already, with a near-limitless amount of potential yet to unlock.
“He’s in the beginning stages of what he’s going to be,” Ellison said. “But each year, you see the development. And the good thing about that young man is he’s a tremendous worker. From the time we got him as an eighth-grader, to now, he’s made tremendous strides.
“I think, by the time he’s finished, that young man will be a lottery pick.”
This story was originally published June 1, 2022 at 7:00 AM.
