Transfer portal talk: Former Ivy League star with family ties to John Calipari in portal
The countdown to enter the NCAA transfer portal is nearing an end.
The deadline to enter the portal is May 11, and despite less than two weeks remaining until that date, some of the top men’s college basketball players from a season ago are still mulling whether or not to change schools for next season.
A major development on this front came last week, when the second-leading scorer in all of men’s college hoops — guard Jordan Dingle of Penn — entered his name into the transfer portal.
Dingle averaged more than 20 points per game each of the last two seasons at the Ivy League school, and there are some longstanding family connections between his family and John Calipari.
Could Kentucky possibly make a run at the 6-foot-3 guard?
Elsewhere, the Wildcats continue to be linked to a former Vanderbilt player, and the Hunter Dickinson sweepstakes moves into another week after Dickinson took another recruiting visit over the weekend.
High-scoring Ivy League guard now in transfer portal
One of the best players available via the NCAA transfer portal this offseason only made his decision to change schools in the last few days.
Jordan Dingle — a 6-3 guard from Penn who averaged 23.4 points per game last season for the Quakers — entered the portal on Friday.
He was the Ivy League Player of the Year last season, and few players in the nation matched his all-around effectiveness from a scoring standpoint: Dingle shot better than 55% on two-point shots, better than 35% on three-point shots and better than 85% on free throws last season.
While likely not a true point guard option at a major conference school, Dingle still possesses the kind of elite scoring ability that has made him an immediate priority for a number of top teams around the country.
Could this include the Wildcats?
There’s already reason to suggest Dingle would at least be receptive to a recruiting pitch by Kentucky: Dingle’s father, Dana, was a member of the 1995-96 UMass team that John Calipari coached to a Final Four.
That being said, the expectation still remains that Antonio Reeves will ultimately return to UK next season after going through the NBA Draft process this offseason, which would negate the need for a veteran scorer in the mold of Dingle.
But if things change with Reeves, then Kentucky could do far worse than making a pass at an experienced college scorer to compliment what will be a youthful backcourt next season following the transfers of CJ Fredrick and Sahvir Wheeler.
In addition to having his name in the NCAA transfer portal, Dingle is also testing the NBA Draft waters while keeping his college eligibility, in similar fashion to UK players like Reeves and Oscar Tshiebwe.
Tyrin Lawrence torched UK last season. Could he be coming to Lexington?
Kentucky fans may still be having nightmares about Tyrin Lawrence several months after the fact.
The 6-4 Vanderbilt guard scored double-digit points against Kentucky on three occasions last season, including 21 at Rupp Arena as part of Vandy’s shocking Senior Night win over the Wildcats.
Now, Lawrence is looking for a new home, and UK is one of the SEC schools linked to him.
Lawrence was Vandy’s second-leading scorer last season, and slashed 50.2% (field goal), 36% (three-point) and 74.3% (free throw) offensively. Like Dingle, he also entered the NBA Draft process, while keeping his college eligibility.
Lawrence took a recruiting visit to Auburn over the weekend, which marked his first official visit as a transfer portal recruit.
While there’s no timetable set for Lawrence to make his college choice, recent chatter has indicated UK has interest in Lawrence, and other schools pursuing him are keeping an eye out for the Wildcats.
That being said, a lot of the same roster factors that could prevent a Jordan Dingle transfer to Kentucky would probably also exist for Lawrence.
Kentucky’s top-ranked 2023 recruiting class is backcourt heavy, with top prep players arriving that are expecting to start at UK after being recruited to score for the Wildcats.
Adding players that fit this same mold, especially when Reeves is still projected to return to college, becomes a tricky roster-building task.
Hunter Dickinson completes weekend visit to Villanova
And to that point, it’s time for another transfer portal update on the player who represents Kentucky’s clear top choice: Hunter Dickinson.
Dickinson’s methodical transfer portal recruitment continued this past weekend with another recruiting visit, this time to Villanova.
This follows last weekend’s visit to Kentucky, as Dickinson is set to pick between a short list that consists of Georgetown, Kansas, Maryland, ‘Nova and UK.
Precious little information has trickled out of Dickinson’s camp during his transfer portal process, but what’s abundantly clear is that he remains the player John Calipari is most interested in adding to next season’s UK roster.
The reasons for that are plentiful, ranging from Kentucky’s current lack of meaningful experience among frontcourt players, to the role the 7-1 Dickinson could occupy as a floor-spacing “five” next to incoming freshman Aaron Bradshaw at the “four.”
Clarity is expected to come with Dickinson’s decision early this week.
