UK basketball is without a 2024 commit. A John Calipari legacy recruit could change that.
The highly anticipated high school basketball matchup this month between Camden (N.J.) and Combine Academy (N.C.) in Frankfort came with good reason for fanfare.
It was a chance for Kentucky fans to get an up-close look at a pair of 2023 UK signees: Aaron Bradshaw and DJ Wagner. Additionally, it was a chance for first-year Louisville head coach Kenny Payne and the Cardinals’ coaching staff to make an in-person impression with Trentyn Flowers, a five-star small forward in the class of 2024.
But the game — which was played Feb. 3 in front of a capacity crowd at the William Exum Center on the campus of Kentucky State University — featured another high school junior who has gotten the attention of UK, U of L and other power conference schools around the country.
Billy Richmond, a junior on the Camden team, has seen his college recruitment accelerate in recent months.
The 6-foot-5, 200-pound shooting guard picked up scholarship offers from Louisville in late September, Kentucky in late December and from both Saint Louis and Kansas State in January.
“It’s been a great experience,” Richmond said postgame of life since he was offered by UK. “(They) just tell me to keep working hard, because if I keep working hard, they’ll be more in touch. I just want to show them why they offered me.”
Richmond introduced himself well to fans who are just becoming familiar with his game: He scored 15 points and showcased his bouncy athleticism during Camden’s dominant 80-57 win over Combine Academy in Frankfort.
That performance came not only in front of John Calipari, Kenny Payne and assistant coaches from both schools, but also in front of several current Kentucky Wildcats who came out to support Bradshaw and Wagner in the game.
Richmond — who is ranked as a four-star player by the 247Sports Composite — took an unofficial visit to Kentucky the day before Camden played in Frankfort.
Richmond took an unofficial visit to Louisville on Feb. 4 for the Cardinals’ home loss to Florida State.
He’s received a significant rankings bump in recent evaluation cycles: Richmond is the No. 74 player overall in the class of 2024 by the 247Sports Composite, an increase from the No. 160 spot he occupied when Kentucky offered him a scholarship in late December.
A trio of UK coaches: Calipari, associate coach Orlando Antigua and assistant coach Chin Coleman, also watched Richmond and Camden play in January at the Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Should Richmond want to learn more about the Kentucky program, or the man leading it, he won’t have to go far.
Richmond’s father played for Calipari at Memphis in the early 2000s, after transferring to that program from Vanderbilt.
While the elder Richmond was dismissed from the Memphis program, he remains in the city as the founder and CEO of The Wing Guru, a popular burger and wings restaurant chain.
According to The Commercial Appeal, Calipari has ordered postgame food from the restaurant for his UK teams before.
Before joining Camden this high school season, Richmond played at East High School in Memphis.
KENTUCKY’S RECRUITING OUTLOOK FOR 2024 CLASS
Here’s a look at the 13 class of 2024 players that currently hold a scholarship offer from Kentucky.
Three of these players (Airious Bailey, Ian Jackson and Tahaad Pettiford) have already committed to another college basketball program.
Naas Cunningham recently cut his list of schools, and left UK out.
▪ PG Tahaad Pettiford (Auburn)
▪ PG Travis Perry
▪ SG Tre Johnson
▪ SG Ian Jackson (North Carolina)
▪ SG Isaiah Elohim
▪ SG Billy Richmond
▪ CG Boogie Fland
▪ SF Naas Cunningham
▪ SF Trentyn Flowers
▪ SF Karter Knox
▪ SF Airious Bailey (Rutgers)
▪ SF Amier Ali
▪ C Flory Bidunga
This story was originally published February 15, 2023 at 6:45 AM.
