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Missing Out On Jasper and Moreno

There are now strong rumblings that Kentucky may miss-out on both Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno, with Alabama and UNC now looking like leaders for Jasper and Moreno possibly leaning towards Indiana. What's everyone thoughts on possibly missing out on two, high-profile in-state kids to our rivals? It's very rare that the state of Kentucky produces two top-30 highschool prospects, and even more rare that neither may not be suiting up in Kentucky blue.

EDIT: Just seen the similar post about this topic, however, cannot read the OP's message to due having white font lol.
I believe when it's all said & done that we get both Moreno & Jasper Johnson. Just can't believe that a kid with as many ties to UK as Jasper Johnson has that he won't come here. And the fact that fellow Kentuckian Malachi Moreno just committed to UK will only help Mark Pope with the recruitment of Johnson.
 
I'm way more worried about success in the transfer portal than I am recruiting 5 star 17 year old's now.
It seems like those who keep talking about Cal's recruiting success thinks recruiting success has replaced winning championships when evaluating a coach's success. Those who keep celebrating Cal's recruiting success only reminds the fans that he wasn't able to do very much with his embarrassment of riches.
 
I would rather have Mullins if I had to chose between he and Jasper Johnson. Best shooter in high school basketball, does more than that, rebounds very well (over 6 per game), 3.2 assist, 3.2 steals per game. A total package. While Jasper is very good, his is not a great shooter, and turns it over a ton. Very streaky, when he gets hot, look out, but when he is cold, he presses and takes bad shots and turns it over,,, a bunch. A poor mans D"Angelo Russell. Both 6-4, Mullins the better overall prospect and will fit Pope's system better. Jasper will want to "get his" and will demand a ton of shots per game. Shooting over 8 3's a game at a 26% clip is not idea for team unity.
 
I would rather have Mullins if I had to chose between he and Jasper Johnson. Best shooter in high school basketball, does more than that, rebounds very well (over 6 per game), 3.2 assist, 3.2 steals per game. A total package. While Jasper is very good, his is not a great shooter, and turns it over a ton. Very streaky, when he gets hot, look out, but when he is cold, he presses and takes bad shots and turns it over,,, a bunch. A poor mans D"Angelo Russell. Both 6-4, Mullins the better overall prospect and will fit Pope's system better. Jasper will want to "get his" and will demand a ton of shots per game. Shooting over 8 3's a game at a 26% clip is not idea for team unity.
They play 2 different positions
 
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It seems like those who keep talking about Cal's recruiting success thinks recruiting success has replaced winning championships when evaluating a coach's success. Those who keep celebrating Cal's recruiting success only reminds the fans that he wasn't able to do very much with his embarrassment of riches.

Spot on...

No one is saying it's not nice to get good freshman players but in the world of NIL you need a great mix of young and veteran players.

But most of all you need a great X and O guy and I believe Pope is that dude.
 
Lesson 101
 
@Butters' Dad's opinion doesn't age like fine wine.

It ages like that crust mustard-colored piss that gets stuck in the area of the toilet bowl just below the rim.

As a long time fan of South Park, the character of Butter’s dad on the show is a closeted homosexual and frequent bath house attendee with a complete lack of self awareness. A true hypocrite in every sense. If that’s what @Butters' Dad is trying to channel, then I’d say he’s done a masterful job.
 
As a long time fan of South Park, the character of Butter’s dad on the show is a closeted homosexual and frequent bath house attendee with a complete lack of self awareness. A true hypocrite in every sense. If that’s what @Butters' Dad is trying to channel, then I’d say he’s done a masterful job.

<iframe src="https://giphy.com/embed/xTdy8mVMn6qJqOjjOg" width="480" height="271" style="" frameBorder="0" class="giphy-embed" allowFullScreen></iframe><p><a href="">via GIPHY</a></p>
 
They play 2 different positions
Nope. Both are shooting / scoring guards. The difference is, one can shoot, the other can't. Jasper is NOT a PG, even if he was, Mullins still averages more assist than he does. You might want to learn a little before spouting off and calling people out. Jasper is more of a combo guard / scoring guard than a point guard.
 
Jasper Johnson is a southpaw scoring guard who has spurts of extreme tough shot-making when he gets hot. He has a super soft natural touch and is very crafty around the lane with a deep bag of runners, floaters, and other types of finishes, in addition to the jumpers and step-backs he’s capable of making from the perimeter. Physically, Johnson is lean, but he’s very long with a recorded +5 wingspan. In addition to building up his body, he also needs to learn to impact the game more when the ball isn’t in his hands, or more specifically, when he’s not on one of his scoring sprees.



H.S. Athletic Background​

Jasper Johnson is a 6-4, 170-pound Combo Guard from Versailles, KY.
 
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sper Johnson​

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Jasper Johnson is a lefty with nice size and good length. What he does is shoot the ball. Johnson has deep range that extends well beyond the three-point arc, and he is at he’s best in catch and shoot or with one/two dribble pull-ups. Would like to see Johnson tighten the handle, can struggle once he is in the paint, especially going right. Lacks blow by burst off the bounce at this point but he is a good straight line athlete with a head of steam.. Has a crafty lay-up package around the basket, especially with the left hand. Solid explosion with a running start. Can get beat off the bounce in
 
per Johnson is an athletic wing with unlimited shooting range who is a top 10 player in the 2025 recruiting class. (Bill Caine/Woodford Sun)
Link (Mo.) Academy coach Bill Armstrong has 21 years of college coaching experience and has helped recruit three McDonald’s All-Americans, 24 all-Southeastern Conference selections and 10 NBA players.

Armstrong understands how special junior guard Jasper Johnson can be. The 6-5 guard transferred from Woodford County High School this season to play for Link and had a spectacular 37-point performance in his homecoming game at Woodford against Huntington Prep.
 
It seems like those who keep talking about Cal's recruiting success thinks recruiting success has replaced winning championships when evaluating a coach's success. Those who keep celebrating Cal's recruiting success only reminds the fans that he wasn't able to do very much with his embarrassment of riches.
I keep forgetting things will change this season. My list of new things are:

- We are going to play zone!
- We will have actual plays ran.
- Our coach will make in-game adjustments.
- We have upperclass players now! Actual seniors on senior night.
- Mid-major schools won’t actually have a chance.

Amazing how stuck some of us can get with the mentality that the above isn’t possible. It will take some time to change. Change is always good.
 
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Nope. Both are shooting / scoring guards. The difference is, one can shoot, the other can't. Jasper is NOT a PG, even if he was, Mullins still averages more assist than he does. You might want to learn a little before spouting off and calling people out. Jasper is more of a combo guard / scoring guard than a point guard.


He brings the ball up court. ESPN has him as a PG as well as the title of the attached link. kid has awesome handles. He is a PG. I have seen him play PG in HS and AAU. I wasn’t calling you out.
 
We already got Moreno and I think it just a matter of time before Johnson follows because I think his uncle played FB at Ky and Moreno has been in his ear so has has Shep.
 
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Dilly shot 31.9 percent from 3 his SR season, a bigger sample size than Jasper's last AAU circuit. He shot well over that here. Need bigger sample sizes, and shot creators can improve consistency. I want him and Mullins preferably, but as long as we get one I'll be happy. Pope will get them as prepared as possible and in a proper system for them to shine as shooters
 
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If Jasper commits to UNC or Bama so soon and without going on an official visit to UK nor giving Pope time to prove his system and build a connection with him, well doesnt that just say we never had a chance and nothing Pope could have done? Jasper is a UNC fan,. dad isnt going to force his son to go to UK just because dad played football here.

Moreno is with ADIDAS........ why do you think Indiana is thought to be his leader? In 15 years how many top 40 players that were with adidas did Cal get? Adidas are going to do everything they can to get Moreno to go to an Adidas school.

Also Moreno didnt grow up a UK fan. now if those 2 were UK fans then yes it would mean Pope fumbled it but they both have situations that Pope can do everything possible and still not land them and its ok.
No, it wouldn’t have meant that as Pope got off to a late start having only just returned to UK. Some players do go to whoever showed interest first.
 
It would be pretty disheartening to lose out on one of these kids let alone both. Especially considering Pope is building the foundations of the program. We should be able to depend on the instate talent as layups. It has always been that way. If you're saying it's not a big deal, you're delusional. It's not even like we're competing against Louisville.
You do understand Pope only just got here, right? Cow should have been on both of these kids and that’s not on Pope. If things were to have gone differently, Moreno having committed, it could easily have been to the lateness of UK showing interest.
 
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I'm all in with giving Pope a real chance and I'm excited about the future. However, it would be a little disappointing to see Ky kids go elsewhere, especially after what we just saw Reed do.

When was the last time a top ranked Kentucky kid that we wanted and pursued went elsewhere? I know it has happened with guys we didn't recruit, but has it happened with guys we did?
Don’t know. Do a little research yourself eh.
 
You cannot, as the coach at Kentucky, lose the best players in the state of Kentucky to places like Indiana and UNC. This cannot happen. Say whatever you want about cal, but be kept kids home.

Losing these kids is very bad. It’s not about losing 5 stars. It’s about losing 5 stars that live in your house.
This is dumb. Pope shows up months ago and is instantly supposed to be in first place with these young men at UK? Years of time and established relationships should all be overcome instantly? Right, makes sense to hardly anyone.
 
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My thoughts are I've been telling everyone this, exactly, would happen from here on out for months and have been called every name in the book including someone's forlorn lover to whom I'm not even attracted.
So you’ve been wrong on this very significantly, as you’ve been on nearly everything you post. I’m guessing your personal relations, like people here, are pretty tired of you?
 
Dilly shot 31.9 percent from 3 his SR season, a bigger sample size than Jasper's last AAU circuit. He shot well over that here. Need bigger sample sizes, and shot creators can improve consistency. I want him and Mullins preferably, but as long as we get one I'll be happy. Pope will get them as prepared as possible and in a proper system for them to shine as shooters
Good post.

What I love about Johnson the most (besides his obvious NBA-level talent), is that he allows Pope to appropriate Cal's "UK is guard-university" thing. Johnson becomes the bridge to the next era of Pope selling the same stuff Calipari sold, which is that UK is Guard-U.

Pope can tell elite guard recruits, "Kentucky is still the place to be if you're an aspiring NBA guard. Look what we did with Jasper. Look at what we did with Chandler and (hopefully) Kinney."

Give me transcendent freshmen guards over 18 year old big men any day. We have a great track record with them: Wall, Maxey, SGA, Fox, Knight, Bledsoe, Murray, Wallace, etc.
 
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