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Jasper Johnson

It is all about the money these days. If he wants to go somewhere else it is not much Pope can do and there are other kids out there that may be better or just as good.
 
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I’m still stunned with this. Family is UK athletic royalty. Seems that Jasper would be jumping at the chance to play for UK rather than UK begging him to play for the top all time program.

If it’s all about 1 & done and how much nil maybe let him go. Might not bring the team first chemistry that UK is instituting. It’s a honor to be a homegrown Ky guy and get to play at UK. I would have thought he would have been like Perry, Sheppard, Moreno and Noah and couldn’t wait to put on that UK uniform.

Like to see him at UK but if he’s not all in for #9 do the Damien Harris thing but you won’t ever be fully celebrated in Ky.
Great point about Harris. I didn’t fault him for picking Saban. I didn’t fault Shaun Alexander for picking Alabama either. Both probably made the right business decision for their pro careers. But it’s also why guys like Jacob Tamme and Keenan Burton are still celebrated in this state nearly 20 years after they played here. And homegrown basketball players like Scotty Hopson are kind of forgotten. Guess we’ll find out what legacy means to Jasper very soon.
Has a top kid from Kentucky with an offer ever not ended up at Kentucky? Serious question.
Scotty Hopson is the most recent one I can think of.
 
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Great point about Harris. I didn’t fault him for picking Saban. I didn’t fault Shaun Alexander for picking Alabama either. Both probably made the right business decision for their pro careers. But it’s also why guys like Jacob Tamme and Keenan Burton are still celebrated in this state nearly 20 years after they played here. And homegrown basketball players like Scotty Hopson are kind of forgotten. Guess we’ll find out what legacy means to Jasper very soon.

Scotty Hopson is the most recent one I can think of.
Did UK really recruit Hopson?
 
crazy comment

Why is it crazy? They don’t even go to class at UNC. They are the biggest phonies in the history of the ACC, and that is a league that claims Mike Krzyzewski as one of its own.
 
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Not sure I can post this, but a certain recruiting guy seems to think UK has made up a ton of ground and are now equal in this race.

They are gonna suck me back into this recruitment 🤦🏻‍♂️
I am at the point if he doesn’t want to come here best of luck to him and it’s clear he prefers Alabama. How ironic a Kentucky kid that plays basketball would rather go to a football school, one word Wow.😮
 
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Great point about Harris. I didn’t fault him for picking Saban. I didn’t fault Shaun Alexander for picking Alabama either. Both probably made the right business decision for their pro careers. But it’s also why guys like Jacob Tamme and Keenan Burton are still celebrated in this state nearly 20 years after they played here. And homegrown basketball players like Scotty Hopson are kind of forgotten. Guess we’ll find out what legacy means to Jasper very soon.

Scotty Hopson is the most recent one I can think of.
I found Hopson on ESPN but it doesn't show him with an offer from Kentucky so not sure. Can't believe I don't remember him. Getting old I guess, turn 52 Friday🙃
 
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Multiple threads on Jasper so posting in this one as well:

Does anyone know how that redheaded Kansas fan keeps getting to talk about Kentucky sports for KSR?

Does he has dirty pictures of Matt Jones in compromising positions?

Did he donate millions to KSR in exchange for being to talk about UK hoops on their platform?

Seriously, what's the deal? I mean no disrespect, but as smart as he is, it doesn't seem like public speaking is his thing.
 
If he's announcing back in his hometown, that has to be good news for UK.
Might well be the last collegiate commitment made at the now "old" Woodford County High School. They're opening a new one at the start of the year, as I understand it.

If it's Kentucky, what a way to go out in her final few months. That school was a damn fine one!
 
UK makes the most sense. Wouldn’t you do it somewhere else if you are going out of state? I mean he doesn’t even go to high school there anymore. That’s almost a slap in the face to his hometown if he goes somewhere other than UK for college after snubbing them for HS.
 
I personally hope Jasper flourishes at UK if he comes here and ends up being good enough to leave after one season.

Pope needs some OAD street cred. He can merge that with everything Cal did with our guards in order to stay relevant with elite high school players.

We don't have to have a team of OAD talent, but having one or two a year isn't going to disrupt Pope's system.
 
I can understand from a business standpoint why a Kentucky kid would want to go to Alabama for football, even though I wouldn't like it, several have done it in the past. As for a kid wanting to go to Alabama in basketball, I don't understand that because going to Kentucky for basketball would be the best business decision. After him thinking about this for a long time I think he will go to Kentucky, if not, it's on to the next man up.
 
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I personally hope Jasper flourishes at UK if he comes here and ends up being good enough to leave after one season.

Pope needs some OAD street cred. He can merge that with everything Cal did with our guards in order to stay relevant with elite high school players.

We don't have to have a team of OAD talent, but having one or two a year isn't going to disrupt Pope's system.
I hope Pope is concentrating on building a competitive college system. Whether he brings in OAD guys to achieve that is not my concern.

It’s about COLLEGE, not NBA, for me.
 
I hope Pope is concentrating on building a competitive college system. Whether he brings in OAD guys to achieve that is not my concern.

It’s about COLLEGE, not NBA, for me.
Why do they have to be mutually exclusive? NBA success can be channeled into recruiting success. Recruiting success will be channeled into wins on the court. That helps our program.

Pitino landed Walker and Rhodes partially because of how he used Mashburn. "Success breeds success." Great players want to know if a coach can get them where they all want to go.

Cal just went nuts with the NBA aspect. Pope will be much more measured, but he's going to continue to recruit elite prospects, and he'll use any NBA success he has along the way. That's how this thing works and will always work. It's why Hurley was in the Green Room this summer. It's why Coach K adopted a pro-day. You use any advantage you have, and UK has a huge advantage when it comes to marquee NBA players.

Why jettison that if we don't have to?
 
Why do they have to be mutually exclusive? NBA success can be channeled into recruiting success. Recruiting success will be channeled into wins on the court. That helps our program.

Pitino landed Walker and Rhodes partially because of how he used Mashburn. "Success breeds success." Great players want to know if a coach can get them where they all want to go.

Cal just went nuts with the NBA aspect. Pope will be much more measured, but he's going to continue to recruit elite prospects, and he'll use any NBA success he has along the way. That's how this thing works and will always work. It's why Hurley was in the Green Room this summer. It's why Coach K adopted a pro-day. You use any advantage you have, and UK has a huge advantage when it comes to marquee NBA players.

Why jettison that if we don't have to?
I only care about UK success. The OAD part is irrelevant.
 
Is he looking to be adopted or is he making a business decision?

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Looks like someone who can’t shoot…. lol. I know it’s practice but those were not easy shots.
That shot looks good whether practice or not, doesn't it? I think freshmen are coming in much better 3-pt. shooters than they generally were in the past. And I think this is just due to what's been emphasized at the next level for a while now. Back when it was all dunks, that's what kids wanted to emulate. But with Steph Curry and the like, 3pt. shooting became the cool thing. Shooting is still a developmental skill, and time favors accuracy, but I do think freshmen are more dependable shooters coming in now than any time in the past.
 
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