Soon, five-star college basketball recruit Nate Ament will make his college commitment.
But when exactly that decision will be made is still unknown.
Ament — a 6-foot-9 power forward who is a five-star prospect and the No. 4 national recruit in the 2025 class — was previously targeting this week’s McDonald’s All-American Game in New York City as the event to reveal his college decision. This year’s game will take place Tuesday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
But Ament — who is working with a top-five list of schools that includes Arkansas, Duke, Kentucky, Louisville and Tennessee — said Monday during a McDonald’s All-American Game interview session that he isn’t planning on committing Tuesday.
“I’m going to push it back. I’m not going to do it tomorrow, on Tuesday,” Ament said.
Whenever Ament does commit to a school, a significant monetary name, image and likeness (NIL) package is set to be a key factor in his college choice.
None of Ament’s final schools are viewed as a runaway leader to land Ament, although Duke was previously seen as the top option.
Ament has officially visited each of his finalists and is the highest-rated class of 2025 prospect yet to commit to a school.
“I want to play for a coach that believes in me, is going to push me to be better than I already am,” Ament said Monday. “But also (who) allows me to showcase my skills and teaches me how to play the game the right way. Also, a great recruiting class. Players that I want to play with. Players that want to play with me. Those two things are huge, and then also the culture of the schools and the team. Do they have a family aspect? Do they bond well, on and off the court? So those things are probably going to play the biggest part into it.”
Moreno — who is one of three recruits signed to play college basketball at UK later this year — was paired with Ament for Monday’s media interview session.
“My pitch has been just, you see what Kentucky has,” Moreno said when asked about his efforts to lobby Ament to commit to UK. “They have legends. They have a crazy fan base. An amazing coach, an amazing coaching staff. Awesome facilities. It’s a great place to be. It’s really basketball-focused and it’s a real, true place where you can grow and you can reach your dreams.”
Kentucky coach Mark Pope’s 2025 high school recruiting class includes Moreno and left-handed guards Jasper Johnson and Acaden Lewis.
Ament, who played high school basketball in Virginia, was teammates with Johnson on the United States team that won gold at the FIBA U18 Men’s AmeriCup in Argentina last summer.
Kentucky’s signed and sealed trio of Moreno, Johnson and Lewis gives UK the sixth-best high school recruiting class in the nation for 2025, according to the 247Sports Composite leaderboard. Duke is projected to have the nation’s best incoming group of freshmen, followed by Houston, UConn, Arkansas, Notre Dame and then the Wildcats.
A commitment from Ament would have Kentucky jump both Notre Dame and Arkansas into fourth place.
Zach Welch, an analyst for Pro Insight Basketball, told the Herald-Leader in February that Ament is considered to be one of the most versatile players in the 2025 high school recruiting class.
“Ament is a prospect who I have no doubt about finding a way to make a tangible impact early on in college, but I do think his college destination will play a big part in his developmental pathways,” Welch said. “As someone with such a versatile game already, he is effectively a ball of clay that can (and) will be molded by his utilization and development at his next stop.”
When speaking about Kentucky and Pope in February on The Youngins Sports Podcast presented by Swish Cultures, Ament pointed to UK’s offensive style and its 3-point shooting approach as positives in his consideration of the Wildcats.
Ament twice had an up-close look at the Kentucky program this past season. He was on a visit to Tennessee on Jan. 28 when a shorthanded Kentucky squad went to Knoxville and won. Then, Ament was on an official visit to Kentucky in February and watched another shorthanded win by UK over Tennessee. Just a few days after that game, Pope went to Virginia to watch Ament play on his high school senior night.
Ament was also courtside for the ACC Tournament championship game between Duke and Louisville on March 15, a game the Blue Devils won.
Of Ament’s final five schools, only Duke is still playing in the NCAA Tournament. The Blue Devils cruised past Alabama on Saturday night to win the East Regional and reach the Final Four for the first time since 2022.
Tennessee lost in the Elite Eight after beating UK in the Sweet 16. Arkansas and Kentucky both lost in the Sweet 16. Louisville was eliminated in the first round.
“I took a lot from the tournament,” Ament said. “Seeing these high-pressure situations and seeing how the coach responds to adversity and how much trust and faith he puts in his players. It was just good for me to see that and see what his plans are, what to do in a tournament run like all these schools had.”
Class of 2025 recruit Nate Ament is down to five schools in his recruitment. Ament will be choosing between Arkansas, Duke, Kentucky, Louisville and Tennessee. Nate Ament on Instagram
Mark Pope, UK basketball look to retool roster for 2025-26 season
While a wholesale roster reset isn’t expected, Pope has some work to do this offseason to retool the Kentucky roster for the 2025-26 season.
Six players from the 2024-25 UK team are out of NCAA eligibility. Those players are Ansley Almonor, Koby Brea, Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr, Jaxson Robinson and Amari Williams.
UK already has four newcomers in the fold for next season, with transfer addition Kam Williams — a freshman wing from Tulane — set to join the three incoming high school recruits.
Cameron Drummond works as a sports reporter for the Lexington Herald-Leader with a focus on Kentucky men’s basketball recruiting and the UK men’s basketball team, horse racing, soccer and other sports in Central Kentucky. Drummond is a second-generation American who was born and raised in Texas, before graduating from Indiana University. He is a fluent Spanish speaker who previously worked as a community news reporter in Austin, Texas.Support my work with a digital subscription
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