Kentucky Basketball Recruiting: BJ Boston commits to the Wildcats

Kentucky basketball is on the board in the 2020 recruiting class. Five-star BJ Boston is the first player to announce his commitment to play under Coach Cal.

It didn’t take long after the grassroots season ended for Kentucky basketball to land its first commit in the 2020 class. With the addition of five-star shooting guard BJ Boston, head coach John Calipari is clearly once again showing his recruiting prowess. At 6-foot-6 with tremendous three-level scoring and two-way potential, Boston is a tremendous building block for this entire recruiting class. Even though UK was rumored to be the favorite in this recruitment for some time, it is still a big deal that the ‘Cats were able to secure Boston’s commitment during his official visit to campus.

On the Nike EYBL circuit, Boston showcased his entire profile as a go-to scorer for the AOT Running Rebels. While playing alongside a star point guard prospect, Boston was absolutely phenomenal en route to averaging 22.8 points (.521/.242/.748), 8.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.9 steals per game across 18 contests. Although he did not shoot the ball especially well from distance over the summer, it is clear that he is one of the best pure scorers in the class.

Additionally, Boston’s defensive acumen was on display as a result of his athleticism and length. Although he needs to add some strength before taking the next step on both ends of the floor, he has a ton of potential to be a lockdown wing defender. He also rebounds remarkably well for his position and this allows him to get out and run in transition quicker. To put it simply, he does just about everything well for a modern wing and is more than deserving of his No. 10 overall ranking.

A clear-cut “one-and-done” prospect, Boston is insanely talented and will be an awesome building block for the future of this 2020 class. Kentucky is now on the board with a commit and he has the ability to sway some other prospects to the program. Perhaps most notably, he could be able to sway Sharife Cooper (No. 19), his AOT backcourt partner, to convert from an Auburn lean (not committed) to UK. That would be an awesome in-conference coup for the Wildcats as they look to continue their stranglehold on the top of the SEC.

Additionally, with Boston now playing his final high school season for Sierra Canyon, he will be competing alongside several other high-profile players. It is no secret that Kentucky is one of the top recruiting programs in the nation but securing an early commit from Boston will also help them out plenty. For Coach Cal, he is getting an all-around wing talent with plenty of versatility and size to jumpstart this recruiting class. Boston, on the other hand, is gaining the opportunity to compete for a national title while preparing himself fo the NBA.

Kentucky’s recruiting class is clearly off to a great start. Boston is an exceptional player with a bright future both in college and at the professional level. The Wildcats are also heavily in contention to land a bunch of other top-rated players and it would be a shock if their final class didn’t end in the nation’s top-5.