Kentucky Basketball Preview: # 12 Brandon Knight

#12 BRANDON KNIGHT

FRESHMAN GUARD

6’3  185 

Fort Lauderdale, FL

Pinecrest High School

Before UK:

Brandon comes to UK a proven leader and a winner as he led Pinecrest High School to four straight state title games and he has two rings from 2008 and 2009.  Knight also garnered national recognition taking home the 2008-2009 National Gatorade Boys Player of the Year Award and then the 2009-2010 Gatorade High School Athlete of the Year.  Brandon dominated the state of Florida statistically, averaging 31.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 3.2 steals as a junior, and 32.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 4 assists his senior season.  In addition, Brandon had a 4.3 GPA.  Knight chose Kentucky over Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Miami and Syracuse.  Knight was Rival’s 6th best prospect and top point guard.

ESPN on Brandon:

"Brandon is a scoring combo guard. He is being recruited by everyone as a point guard but the thing he does best is score. He is a streaky shooter with range to 22 feet. When he gets hot he can run off a bunch in a row. He is good off the dribble (mostly with right hand) and is also effective catching and shooting. He is more of a volume scorer though – meaning he needs a lot of shots in order to get his points. He is an extreme competitor and is a player that wants to take (and generally make) the last shot – as he did here at the Flyin’ to the Hoop Invitational. He can dribble drive into the lane and hit floater and pull ups. He has the entire arsenal offensively. He can be a very good defender when needed. He has solid length and is an above average athlete. Again, his competitiveness can come into play here. He is a good rebounder for his position and can push the ball once he secures the rebound. Brandon is one of the top talents in the 2010 class."

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER:

Brandon got his UK legacy off to a stellar start earlier this season in UK’s trip to Canada.  During the three game series, he averaged almost 22 points a game, 8 assists and 5 rebounds.  Knight showed more of his scoring skill in the Blue/White game last night as he led all scorers with 37 points, and had 8 boards and 4 assists.  So far. the brief glimpses we have gotten of Knight has done nothing but make the Wildcat fans hungry for more.

WHAT TO EXPECT THIS SEASON:

Knight will start the season as the starting point guard for UK and so far, he looks like a better scorer than John Wall.  And this is probably where we should stop the Wall comparisons.  Look for Knight to be more involved in the DDMO and to take a lot of shots in doing so.  Knight is the type of scorer that can take over a game with a streak of 8-12 points a game by himself.  He also has very good court vision and is a very good defender.  So far in his brief Kentucky career, he has already had 12 assists in a game, but the DDMO will require a different type of PG than Kentucky fans are used to.  Knight will do a lot of driving and “violent cuts” to create scoring opportunities and when he gets double coverage should be able to hit the open Wildcat.

Numbers wise, Knight is capable of an All SEC performance.  Look for him to average 16-18 points a game with 8 assists and 6 rebounds a game.  There will be some games that Knight takes over and scores in the 30 point range and puts the team on his shoulders.  If there is any player that can take on the legend of John Wall and persevere and make his own name, it is Brandon Knight.

CALIPARI on BRANDON

“Brandon is a warrior on and off the court. He is as driven as any other player that I’ve ever coached. He has an innate ability to score while finding the open man. Right away he should be a leader and also a top-notch defender for us.”

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