NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Pros and cons of 5-star C Patrick Ngongba top options

Kentucky Wildcats

Pros

With former Duke legend Coach K out of NCAA Basketball, that leaves Kentucky HC John Calipari as the best in the business when it comes to sending players to the NBA. There are examples literally everywhere, including in the frontcourt. And the latest was Oscar Tshiebwe, who went from a solid big man at West Virginia to putting up absurd stats at Kentucky, winning National Player of the Year two seasons ago.

The development and spotlight in front of scouts will give Ngongba a good chance at getting in position for the NBA and if the current centers (Ugonna Onyenso and Zvonimir Ivisic) become true pro candidates, the path for Ngongba gets much better.

Cons

But what if they aren’t? There are four players on the roster that can play the five-spot. Tre Mitchell has one more year left and Aaron Bradshaw is widely believed to be a “one-and-done” player. But with top-40 center commit Somto Cyril already in the 2024 class, that’s potentially a big logjam for someone like Ngongba, who’d have to wait a couple of years before getting meaningful playing time.

So if early minutes is what he’s after, Kentucky isn’t a great option. And there’s plenty of former top-100 recruits that had to transfer out of here in order to get playing time elsewhere. That could be the future for Ngonbga if he’s not ready to contribute as a freshman.