Calapari’s late signees round out roster
With the departure of seven players to the NBA this past April, Kentucky’s 2015-16 basketball roster has been a fluid affair. As the recruiting season wound down this spring, Skal Labisierre, Charles Matthews, and Isaiah Briscoe were the only three commitments signed on to join Alex Poythress, Marcus Lee, Tyler Ulis, and Derek Willis on the Wildcats’ roster.
Following several recruiting misses of blue chip targets, John Calipari opted to add junior college transfer Mychal Mulder to the mix in late April. It was the commitment of Jamal Murray in July, however, that really gave a boost to Kentucky’s chances next season.
With the addition of Murray, the Wildcats roster was loaded in the backcourt, but was lacking depth and size in the post. That all changed when news broke this past week that 7-foot, 245-pound center Isaac Humphries would be joining the Wildcats this season.
Humphries, a native of Australia, has most recently played at La Lumiere in Indiana. While only 17 years of age, the massive Aussie is expected play a significant role as a backup for Skal Labissiere. The Wildcats also expect to add 6-foot-9, 256-pound power forward Tai Wynyard to the roster in January.
While some speculated John Calipari had lost his magic touch on the recruiting trail, Kentucky has yet again ended up with arguably the best recruiting class in the nation. The Wildcats will have a lot of talented new faces (and accents) when they take the court in November.
Cats add first piece to 2016 class
John Calipari added the first piece of his 2016 class this past week with the commitment of Sacha Killeya-Jones. The 6-foot-10, 210 lb. power forward currently plays for Virginia Episcopal School in Lynchburg, VA. Killeya-Jones chose the Wildcats over North Carolina, Connecticut, and Virginia.
Eric Howard is a native of Calvert City and a Murray State graduate. He lives in Lexington with his wife, Angie, and daughter, Lily. Eric is the statewide manager of Kennedy’s Fan Shop and can be reached at ehoward@kennedys.com.