Kentucky Basketball: Johnny Juzang Commits to the Wildcats

6-7 5-star sharpshooting wing Johnny Juzang reclassified to 2019 and has now picked the Kentucky Basketball as his new home. Huge pickup for John Calipari.

Friday afternoon, 5-Star 2019 wing Johnny Juzang became the latest piece of the now number one ranked Kentucky Basketball recruiting class. Shocker! I’m kidding, obviously, but Juzang’s addition is a welcome one in Lexington and there are minutes to be had for the skills he provides in 2019-20.

For starters, Juzang is originally a 2020 recruit who made the decision to reclassify into 2019 a few weeks ago, and Kentucky was the overwhelming favorite even then. I’d say the decision to jump to 2020 and commit to a relatively loaded Kentucky team is similar to what Joey Baker did last season at Duke. Baker reclassified to join the Zion-R.J.-Cam regime and sat for most of the year, but was still able to undergo a season of college experience off the court, which I’m sure will prove valuable.

Juzang, though, I would expect to play, sparingly if nothing else. At 6-7 and listed as a 43% shooter,  Johhny’s jumper will force Calipari’s hand. I presume Juzang will play shooting guard and small forward mainly, although the Cats already have three small forwards on the roster. If deployed at the two-guard spot, Juzang will tower over the vast majority of his counterparts and should thrive defensively and comfortably be able to rise up and get his shot off.

In terms of his actual role and corresponding minutes load, he’ll have to shine in practice and show Calipari he is capable of knocking down shots at the college level. With Ashton Hagans, Tyrese Maxey, and Kahlil Whitney all slotted to start, Juzang will be exclusively a bench piece I suspect. But even off the pine, Kentucky has Immanuel Quickley, Kentucky Mr. Basketball Dontaie Allen, and Keion Brooks all vying for minutes on the perimeter. As of now, it looks like Juzang is the fourth option at guard and at best the backup small forward.

Depending on Juzang’s goals for his freshman year, his commitment could be a fantastic decision, or it could be a total disaster. If Johnny came to Kentucky with the usual goal of dreams one-and-done dancing in his head, well, good luck! However, if Juzang is mature in understanding his role and knows it will take him two or three years to develop into a pro-ready prospect, then I think his time at UK could be substantially beneficial for both parties.

Overall, Juzang is another great pickup for the Wildcats‘ 2020 roster, and they’re not done yet! Stay tuned, because I think more positive recruiting fortune is on the way (cough* Jaden McDaniels) and if you want a primer on the best remaining options for the Wildcats, check out my piece from last week!