Now, UNC is not reportedly recruiting John Wall (PG, 6’4″, 2009), the stud point guard from Raleigh, NC, so why was he reportedly at the Dean Dome to watch a game last week?
Maybe John is just a fan of great basketball, and it’s hard to argue that the Tar Heels aren’t playing well right now, and are probably loaded with a lot of NBA talent that he might face in the NBA some day. But it’s not that. It’s that Kentucky still wants to be on Wall’s list alongside Duke and NC State, and he went to sit and watch the Wildcats take on the Heels. I don’t know how much of a factor a team’s performance affects recruiting, but the Wildcats put on an abysmal first half performance and got blown out of the gym. They put forth a stronger effort in the second half but the reality is that the Tar Heels manhandled them at every position with the exception of UK’s Patrick Patterson, who apparently the Wildcat guards don’t know exists.
This game could point to a few things: first, that Kentucky is not on the same level as UNC right now, and for a program as big as Kentucky, that is not good. Secondly, that loss is the kind that adds up, when combined with the blowout loss to Vanderbilt last season, and it starts a case against coach Billy Gillespie.
Kentucky is not a program that misses the NCAA tournament, much less comes down to Chapel Hill and looks like a high school program, and the UK fans, alumni and history won’t take it for long. I know it’s only one game, but I can’t help but think it did nothing to help them get in the mix for Wall, especially considering Wall already has looked at them in the past. It’s just as likely that John just wanted to catch up with the UK players, but of course, who knows?
Posted by Marcus 
ACC Basketball Recruiting 