NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Analyzing 5-star PG Jaden Bradley final 5 teams
Gonzaga Bulldogs
The Bulldogs have become a national powerhouse, thanks to consistently having elite guard play, including top-5 NBA Draft pick Jalen Suggs. It’s not a surprise that another five-star recruit is interested in Gonzaga but the problem here is the number of other ball-handlers currently in the picture.
In the best-case scenario for Bradley, Andrew Nembhard will go pro after next season, as well as Iowa State transfer Rasir Bolton. And if top-20 freshman guard Nolan Hickman has a good year, he could be a first-round pick as well. That still leaves another five-star guard in Hunter Sallis around, and one of those three guards easily could come back. And that doesn’t even include Anthony Black, a five-star prospect that Gonzaga is reportedly after as well. Unless he’s definitely willing to share the backcourt and maybe even come off the bench, this option has just too many hoops for Bradley to jump through.
Kentucky Wildcats
The Wildcats are in a similar spot to Gonzaga in that there are a lot of pieces that could go a number of ways. We do know that Davion Mintz will move on after next year but Georgia transfer and last season’s SEC assist leader Sahvir Wheeler could be around for as long as three more seasons. They also have top-20 freshman guard TyTy Washington on board who may or may not be a “one and done” pro prospect.
This doesn’t even include what could happen in the 2022 class, as top-5 overall recruit Skyy Clark is on board and the team reportedly is in a strong position to land Shaedon Sharpe, a top-5 overall shooting guard prospect. There’s a real chance that Bradley would have to come off the bench if he chooses Kentucky, which just seems too much for him to want to commit to when there are simply better options.
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Things could go differently in this recruitment but on paper, Florida State and Arizona look like the top options for Jaden Bradley, with Alabama certainly in the mix. I wouldn’t count out Gonzaga and Kentucky but there are just too many good guards in the equation to view them as viable contenders.