Ranking the Contenders: Five-star guard Tre Johnson
Tre Johnson is the top-ranked prospect in the 2024 class and, in turn, the most in-demand junior in the country. But while every school in America would love to have the five-star guard wearing its uniform, the list of teams with an actual chance to land him is short.
Today, Rivals recruiting director Rob Cassidy examines the contenders and ranks them in order of how likely they are to come out on top.
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TEXAS
Texas was seen as the early favorite to land Johnson before former head coach Chris Beard was fired for cause following a domestic violence arrest, but the Longhorns’ chances took a bit of a hit when uncertainty took hold. Now that UT has removed the interim tag from next to Rodney Terry’s name and made the former assistant the long-term head coach, things have settled back down.
Terry has been Johnson’s lead recruiter all along and has deep ties to the No. 1 prospect’s family, having coached Johnson’s father at Baylor in the 90s. Nothing is set in stone when it comes to Johnson, who isn’t expected to make a decision any time soon, but Texas should feel good about where it stands coming off an Elite Eight appearance, with Terry firmly in the driver’s seat.
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KENTUCKY
Johnson and his one-and-done aspirations represent exactly the kind of recruiting battle Kentucky seems to win, but it feels like the Wildcats have work left to do with the Lone Star State native. That said, Johnson took an official to Lexington back in January, which allowed the Wildcats to close the gap while Texas’ coaching situation was in flux.
For the time being, Johnson's recruitment seems to feature a tight-knit group at the top with little space separating the top two contenders. The five-star prospect’s lead recruiter was KT Turner before the former Wildcats assistant left his post to take the head coaching job at UT Arlington last month. It’s too soon to tell if that will have any effect on the situation, however. Chin Coleman is now spearheading the five-star’s recruitment.
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BAYLOR
Legacy is a powerful draw. So is high-level success. Baylor checks both boxes, as Johnson’s father played for the Bears well before the program turned into a national powerhouse. That said, it feels like the Bears have work to do if they hope to actually land the five-star guard.
His relationship with the Baylor staff doesn’t seem as cultivated as the one he has with Texas, but things can change in a hurry during the summer. Scott Drew’s program is certainly worth keeping an eye on in the coming months and into the fall.
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ARKANSAS
Arkansas seems to be on the periphery of Johnson’s process for the time being, but recent history says not to count Eric Musselman out of anything. Johnson has said he hopes to visit Arkansas, but hasn’t as of yet. If such a trip ever takes place, the Razorbacks will feel like a serious player. Until then, it’s safe to consider them a dark horse at best.