Nearly all the Top 100 basketball recruits for 2021 are committed. Here’s who’s left.
The early signing period for high school seniors ended Wednesday, and nearly all of the Top 100 players in the class of 2021 have already made their college commitments.
Only 12 players from that group remain uncommitted, a staggeringly low number compared to recent recruiting cycles. A few of those prospects — Jaden Hardy, Hunter Sallis and Efton Reid, as of now — are still on Kentucky’s recruiting radar for next season.
Here’s the latest on each of those 12 uncommitted Top 100 prospects, in order of their current spot in the 247Sports composite rankings:
1. Patrick Baldwin Jr. (small forward): The sharp-shooting prospect from Milwaukee has a UK scholarship offer and technically hasn’t cut the Wildcats from consideration, though it’s looking more and more like he will choose to play for either Duke or hometown Milwaukee, where his father is the head coach. It wasn’t a surprise that Baldwin didn’t sign in the early period, but he also might not wait all the way until the spring to make a commitment. Such an announcement could come at any time.
2. Chet Holmgren (center): The uniquely skilled 7-footer from Minnesota could be moving up to the No. 1 spot soon. His most recent nationally televised performance — a standout showing against top-ranked junior Emoni Bates on ESPN2 last week — drew rave reviews from scouts and analysts. Holmgren still has several schools on his list — Kentucky never seriously pursued him — and Rivals.com recently named Gonzaga as the favorite, followed by Ohio State, Minnesota and Michigan. His recruitment has been difficult to decipher, and it’s possible he could ultimately choose to go the G League route (or take some other professional path).
4. Jaden Hardy (combo guard): The top-ranked uncommitted player still on Kentucky’s radar, Hardy could be moving up even higher in the rankings soon. The super scorer from the Las Vegas area is seriously considering taking the preps-to-pros route. If he doesn’t, Kentucky, UCLA and Oregon are often mentioned as the college favorites. He’ll likely be one of the final players on this list to make his next destination known.
7. Hunter Sallis (point guard): Arguably the top point guard in the 2021 class, Sallis is holding off on a decision until the spring in hopes that the NCAA will lift its recruiting travel ban in time for him to take some college visits. If that happens, a trip to Lexington would likely top his list. The 6-5 prospect from Omaha, Neb., has a list of eight schools, and Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas and hometown Creighton are often mentioned as the top-tier choices for his commitment.
10. Michael Foster (power forward): If Foster opts for the college route, it looks like Georgia might be the favorite. That’s a big if, however. Foster has been linked to the preps-to-pros route for a while now, and it would probably be an upset if he ever plays college ball.
14. Aminu Mohammed (small forward): Georgia might have a better shot with Mohammed, a strong wing from Washington, D.C. who still lists several potential college destinations. One wrinkle in his recruitment: there’s been recent talk of a possible midseason college enrollment, which would likely shake things up even more. Kentucky has not been involved (and the Cats surely won’t need any wing help this season, if Mohammed goes to college early).
16. Trevor Keels (shooting guard): Duke was often viewed as the favorite to land the standout perimeter player from Virginia, but that buzz has died down a bit lately. Rivals.com recently speculated that Villanova is the actual favorite for Keels at the moment. It wasn’t too long ago, remember, that Nova nabbed Bryan Antoine, another five-star recruit long expected to pick Duke. Might it happen again?
22. Efton Reid (center): Kentucky has stayed in regular contact with the 7-footer from Virginia for the past year, but his recruitment has always been a bit unorthodox, and his commitment was never necessarily expected to go to the biggest name on his list. The Herald-Leader was told last week that Ohio State and Pittsburgh were in the best spots heading into the early signing period, though there’s no clear timetable for when a final decision might come.
23. Charles Bediako (center): The Crystal Ball is unanimous that Alabama leads for the IMG Academy (Fla.) big man, with several picks coming from national analysts and all of those predictions coming in the past month or so. The Crimson Tide are the clear favorite.
43. Mac Etienne (center): The Brewster Academy (N.H.) big man narrowed his recruitment this week to four schools: Illinois, Marquette, Miami and UCLA. A commitment could come before the end of the calendar year, and Etienne is expected to be an instant-impact college player.
65. Mason Miller (power forward): The 6-9 son of 2001 NBA Rookie of the Year (and former Memphis assistant coach) Mike Miller recently narrowed his recruitment to Indiana and Creighton, and it looked like he might decide in time for the early signing period. That decision hasn’t come in yet, but it’s expected soon.
97. Wesley Cardet (combo guard): Alabama has been mentioned as a possible favorite for the talented perimeter player from Florida. Auburn and Kansas State have also emerged as top-tier candidates. There’s no timetable for a college decision, and one doesn’t seem imminent.
This story was originally published November 19, 2020 at 10:05 AM.
