Kentucky lands four-star point guard
When people started projecting Kentucky's 2014 recruiting class and the potential destination of four-star point guard Tyler Ulis, not many figured the two paths would cross.
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As it turns out, John Calipari's program and the floor general from Chicago Heights (Ill.) Marian ended up being a match.
Friday night, during a halftime ceremony at his high school's football game, the 5-foot-8 point guard confirmed what had been heavily speculated for the past week: He's headed to Kentucky.
With one standout performance against the nation's best after another, Ulis steadily moved his way up to No. 33 in the Rivals150 and into UK's sights. Once Emmanuel Mudiay selected SMU, the Wildcats turned up the heat. After visiting officially at the beginning of the week, Ulis is in the fold.
Obviously, Ulis is not the typical point guard observers are used to seeing play for Calipari. He doesn't have the size of a John Wall, Derrick Rose, Andrew Harrison or even a Marquis Teague.
However, Ulis is no slouch. The concerns about his lack of size and strength are valid, but to date the Chicago product has proved he can overcome them.
Ulis is quick. He has an outstanding feel for the game, he can shoot, and he is a vocal leader who doesn't back down from anybody. Those are the qualities -- combined with hopes that they can bulk him up -- that the Wildcats are banking on in going after a player who is outside of their usual mode. It doesn't hurt that Ulis has been linked to a possible package deal with recent UK visitor and high-end shooting guard Devin Booker.
Ulis is the second member of the class of 2014 to choose the Wildcats. He joins five-star big man Karl Towns, and they continue to chase other five-star talents including Jahlil Okafor, Stanley Johnson, Myles Turner, Rashad Vaughn, Trey Lyles, Justise Winslow, Kelly Oubre and James Blackmon in anticipation of another mass exodus to the NBA by current players.
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