For the last week, John Calipari has spoken like a man who plans on returning as Kentucky basketball’s head coach.
On Tuesday night, UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart confirmed that would be the case.
And because of this, Calipari has spoken extensively about his incoming 2024 recruiting class during each of his media opportunities since UK suffered an upset loss in the NCAA Tournament first round.
Just minutes after that defeat in Pittsburgh, Calipari’s somber postgame comments included a mention of his next group of UK freshmen.
“We have an unbelievable group coming in that I feel really good about,” Calipari said while answering a question about potentially changing his youth-heavy roster approach.
On Monday night during his final radio show of the 2023-24 season, Calipari again discussed several future Wildcats. It remains to be seen what the on-court roles will be for next season’s crop of UK freshmen: Clarity will arrive in the coming weeks and months as stay-or-go decisions are made by players from this season’s roster and UK pursues players from the NCAA transfer portal.
As Calipari prepares for his 16th season as head coach at Kentucky in 2024-25, here’s an in-depth look at the six first-year players he will be welcoming to Lexington later this year.
Players are listed in alphabetical order.
Of these players, four have signed their national letters of intent to play at Kentucky: Somto Cyril, Boogie Fland, Travis Perry and Jayden Quaintance. Both Karter Knox and Billy Richmond committed to UK after the fall signing period. Knox and Richmond are expected to sign with Kentucky in April.
Because Knox and Richmond haven’t singed their national letters of intent yet, UK and Calipari can’t comment on them.
SOMTO CYRIL
Position: Center (6-10, 252)
Path to UK: Cyril was the first player in the class of 2024 to commit to Kentucky when he did so last June. Cyril has spent the last two seasons at the Atlanta-based Overtime Elite (OTE) program. UK freshman guard Rob Dillingham spent his final prep basketball season at OTE, and one of Cyril’s OTE teammates, small forward Karter Knox, is also coming to Lexington next season.
Cyril was born in Nigeria and moved to the United States in 2021.
Assuming he sees game time for the Cats next season, Cyril will become the 21st international-born player to play for Kentucky and the 15th with Calipari as head coach.
What to know: Cyril is considered a throwback center who operates around the rim with brute force, the kind that leads to powerful, highlight-reel dunks as well as the ability to be a strong rebounder.
Cyril was OTE’s Defensive Player of the Year for the 2022-23 season after averaging more than six rebounds and three blocks per game. But his game still lacks polish, and foul trouble has been a persistent problem for him, despite OTE’s lax rules when it comes to fouling out of games.
Cyril missed extended time this season at OTE because of a left hand injury.
Calipari said: “Somto’s made unbelievable strides. He is a dominating — he’s one of those bigs there’s just not many of them anymore, which rim-run, blocking shots, big rebounder, getting better offensively, but he’s more of the older school,” in November.
Corey Frazier, Cyril’s coach at OTE, said: “He’s gotten so much better in his screening, getting out of the screen and finding the open creases in the defense… When he’s motivated, now it’s quick screen, get out, quick lobs. It allows our guards to get to different spots and do a lot of things. (Cyril) has improved his passing, way better than he did last year,” in December.
BOOGIE FLAND
Position: Guard (6-2, 170)
Path to UK: Fland was at the center of an intense recruiting battle that ultimately came down to Indiana and Kentucky. Fland picked the Wildcats over the Hoosiers in October, and Fland was the second commitment for Kentucky in this recruiting class.
Fland has spent his high school career at Archbishop Stepinac in White Plains, New York, just outside of New York City. Earlier this month, Fland and Stepinac won a second straight Catholic High School Athletic Association AA City Championship. Earlier this year at the prestigious Hoophall Classic, Fland had 17 points, eight rebounds and four assists in 29 minutes played in a win.
Fland is a 2024 McDonald’s All-American and will be taking part in that annual showcase on April 2 in Houston.
What to know: A true three-level scorer, Fland has the ability make shots from long range while also being crafty enough to knife his way through defenses and draw fouls.
Despite a disappointing shooting season on the Nike EYBL circuit last year, belief is strong that Fland can be a solid college scorer. His handle and ability to initiate offense has gotten better over the course of his high school career, but Kentucky’s ideal scenario would be to have a more experienced ball handler run point next season. This adds further importance to the stay-or-go decisions faced by UK freshman guards Reed Sheppard and D.J. Wagner.
Fland is an active defender who welcomes the challenge of trying to defend skilled opponents.
Calipari said: “I like this group (of freshmen) because there’s physicality. Boogie’s not that way, but Boogie is so fast and able to score and shoot, that it’s OK when the other guys coming in are all physical,” in March.
Fland said: “(Calipari) said, ‘You come in, and be you.’ … He basically said I could come in there and be myself. Why not go to that program, go to that coach or where the coaches are believing in me to do what I do?” in January.
KARTER KNOX
Position: Small forward (6-6, 224)
Path to UK: Knox is UK’s most recent commit in the 2024 class: He pledged to become a Wildcat this month just hours after UK won its regular season finale at Tennessee, which ended up being the final victory of the 2023-24 season for Kentucky.
Knox’s recruitment eventually came down to four options: Louisville, Kentucky, South Florida and Overtime Elite, where Knox played his final season of prep basketball after a standout career at Tampa (Fla.) Catholic High School.
Knox is a younger brother of Kevin Knox, the former UK one-and-done star and NBA draft lottery pick, and of Kobe Knox, a starting guard at South Florida. The Knox family also holds close ties with former UK assistant coach and recently fired Louisville head coach Kenny Payne, which offered several layers of intrigue to Knox’s recruitment.
At OTE this season, Knox averaged more than 23 points per game in the regular season. He was a teammate of fellow UK commit Somto Cyril.
Knox is a 2024 McDonald’s All-American and will be taking part in that annual showcase on April 2 in Houston.
What to know: Knox is an offensively focused player who is still making strides when it comes to shot selection and making sure he creates a quality scoring opportunity each time down the court.
Defensively, Corey Frazier — who coaches both Cyril and Knox at OTE — has stressed the need for Knox to provide consistent effort. Knox has functional size and his OTE coaches have spent time working with him on how to use his frame to gain better position on offense.
A volume scorer with the potential to translate a multi-faceted skill set to the college game, Knox’s biggest key will be repeating good basketball habits and continuing to refine his offensive game to complement the Kentucky roster around him.
Corey Frazier, Knox’s coach at OTE, said: “He’s starting to learn the game through a different lens, which is good to see. … We’re challenging him on a lot of things,” in December.
Knox said: “With Cal, they run the dribble-drive (offense). So, really, everyone is going to touch (the ball)… So the role I’m in, obviously do everything: score, defend, make plays for my teammates. … It’s all set there for me. It’s just, I’ve got to execute, put the work in, do my job on the court and stay focused,” in March.
TRAVIS PERRY
Position: Guard (6-2, 170)
Path to UK: Perry (Lyon County) represents the second-consecutive winner of the Kentucky Mr. Basketball award to stay in the commonwealth and play for the Wildcats, following Reed Sheppard (North Laurel). But the decision to play at UK was a surprise choice by Perry, who in November selected the Wildcats from a final shortlist of schools that included Alabama, Cincinnati, Ole Miss and Western Kentucky.
Perry is the all-time leading scorer in Kentucky boys’ high school basketball history, having scored 5,481 points for Lyon County in a varsity career that stretches back to his seventh grade season.
Perry and Lyon County just won the Sweet 16 state tournament at Rupp Arena, with Perry scoring 88 points across four state tournament games.
What to know: Perry is a true sharpshooter who is a threat to shoot, and score, from any spot in the halfcourt. He’s seen virtually all kinds of opposing defenses during his high school career, but still produced standout scoring numbers thanks to an elite ability to drain shots as a spot-up and motion shooter.
While it may be easy to draw parallels between Perry and Sheppard — the darlings of Kentucky prep basketball in recent years — they are not the same player. Both boast impressive basketball IQ, but Perry will have a heavy learning curve to adjust to college-level defenses and other ways of scoring aside from his perimeter game.
How fast Perry is able to bridge that athleticism gap will determine reasonable freshman year expectations for him.
Calipari said: “I couldn’t be more proud and I’m happy that (Perry’s) desire, just like Reed’s, was to play at Kentucky. Now, again, a lot of players, they’re coming here because of what the future holds, but so are Reed and Travis. They are too. But they have a special place in their heart for this state and this program,” in March.
Perry said: “In the SEC especially, you’re not going to go in there and be able to take a play off. Like (now), here and there I’ll be able to take a play off on defense, just sit at the top of the zone or something like that. (In the SEC), you’re going to have a 6-5 dude driving at you and if you don’t stop him he’s going to pull up for 3. And if you stop him he’s going to drive around you and dunk it. It’s just going to be a lot different …” in December.
JAYDEN QUAINTANCE
Position: Forward (6-9, 230)
Path to UK: Quaintance capped a flurry of recruiting activity for the Wildcats when he committed to UK in November over Missouri, the only other finalist in his recruitment.
He’s the top-ranked recruit in the 2024 class for UK: 247Sports has Quaintance as the No. 8 overall prospect in the class and ESPN has him as the No. 14 overall prospect. Rivals ranks Quaintance as the No. 11 overall prospect, one spot behind Fland at No. 10.
Originally from Ohio, Quaintance closed his prep basketball career at Word of God Christian Academy. The Raleigh, North Carolina, school also produced UK one-and-done star John Wall.
Quaintance reclassified from the 2025 to the 2024 recruiting group last summer and isn’t eligible for the NBA draft until the 2026 edition.
What to know: Quaintance appears to be a two-year pickup for UK, and he oozes potential as a skilled big who has recently prioritized an outside-in offensive approach.
He has a perimeter game that’s developed nicely, in part because Quaintance has gotten more consistent with both his handle and his shot. This has naturally led to moments of offensive initiation from Quaintance, who can also act as a rim-runner and lob-finisher, as well as a deterrent at the rim on defense.
This versatility means Quaintance can play the 4 or the 5 at Kentucky based on the roster around him. Given his young age and reclassification — Quaintance is currently 16 and won’t turn 17 until July — growing pains are expected as he adapts to the physicality and speed of college basketball.
Calipari said: “Jayden is a prodigy with a unique combination of strength, agility, skill and size for a young man who is only 16 years old. He has incredible ceiling and we’re excited about what his future holds,” in a news release in November.
Quaintance said: “(UK has) done it before. They’ve had so many top players, top bigs, their résumé is undeniable. So you’ve got to respect that and see what they have done,” in October.
BILLY RICHMOND
Position: Small forward (6-7, 200)
Path to UK: Richmond represents the latest recruiting trend for Calipari: Players whose fathers played for him at Memphis. This is the third straight recruiting cycle in which this has occurred following Adou Thiero in 2022 and D.J. Wagner in 2023.
Richmond, a Memphis native, committed to Kentucky in late December, just prior to UK’s road win at Louisville, from a group of finalists that also included Alabama, LSU and Memphis.
Richmond is also the latest Camden (New Jersey) High School connection to go to UK, following recent Wildcats Lance Ware, Aaron Bradshaw and the aforementioned Wagner.
A self-described “big guard,” Richmond and his Camden team controversially won another New Jersey state championship this year. That school has more state championships than any other New Jersey public school program in history.
What to know: Richmond referring to himself as a big guard is no accident: The athletic lefty has a strong motor and his size allows him to be a good offensive attacker when moving toward the basket.
His frame, which still has room for muscle to be added, handles contact well, another bonus given Richmond’s driving style of play with the ball in his hands. Richmond’s game lacks the three-level scoring ability that Fland’s does — Richmond shot just 25% from 3-point range during the 2023 Nike EYBL regular season — but the duo could therefore serve as complements to each other in the Kentucky backcourt next season.
Richmond competes on defense and likes to bring the ball up the court, a further incentive for him to hit the glass hard to start transition opportunities.
Maalik Wayns, Richmond’s coach at Camden, said: “Last year he was a defensive menace. He’s super athletic, but his shot-making ability has come a long way. And it’s just going to keep getting better,” in January.
Richmond said: “This year, I found my role and I’m more of the main guy, so I’ve got to make everybody function right. So just being on ball more, getting my teammates involved, playing more point guard,” in January.