2011 Kentucky Basketball Recruiting: Can Kanter's ineligibility open up a spot for Daniels, Lacey, or even Kendrick?

We know how the adage goes.  When a door is closed, a window is opened.  You can pretty much apply that to anything in life, even Kentucky’s number one rated 2011 recruiting class.  And this could be a class that can get bigger and better by signing day in May.

As of  now, Kentucky has eleven players on scholarship, two under the NCAA limit.  Josh Harrellson will graduate and  Jarrod Polson is expected to be on scholarship for this year only, meaning he would be a walk-on next year.  That leaves four open scholarships for 2011.  Come on down, Marquis Teague, Michael Gilchrist, Anthony Davis, and Kyle Wiltjer.  All of these four are signed, sealed, and delivered for 2011, meaning technically UK has no available scholarships for 2011.

Until now.  As we know, Enes Kanter was declared ineligible by the NCAA.   And he still has the opportunity to appeal the decision.  Whether Kanter plays or not this year, he is more than likley a one year player for UK.  Even if he is able to play for UK later this year, he is expected to be a one and done player.  So in effect, as of now, it looks as if UK has one more scholarship for 2011.

So who is going to fill that slot?

#9  DEANDRE DANIELS

It only seems like Kentucky has been pursuing Daniels forever, but get used to hearing his name the rest until May.  At #9 on the Rivals list, Daniels is one of only three uncommitted player in Rival’s top 26 and the only one with Kentucky on his mind.  If we recall, Kentucky picked up their pursuit of Daniels around August when it appeared that he would reclassify into the 2010 class.  That fell through and John Calipari was rumored  to have told Daniels that there may not be a spot on the 2011 class if he did not reclassify. 

At 6’8, Daniels is the third best SF in the 2011 class (behind #1 Gilchrist) but he would have the size and versatility to play either forward position.  Daniels was a previous Texas commit and he is said to have Kentucky, NC State, UCLA, UNLV and Southern Cal high on his list.

#34  TREVOR LACEY

With three forwards in the 2011 class, Calipari may look for another guard.  And that guard very well could be SG Trevor Lacey from Alabama.  Lacey has been rumored to either be a Kentucky lean or close to committing to either Auburn/Alabama for quite some while but Lacey has been doing a pretty good job of keeping everyone guessing.  Aside from those three schools, Lacey also has Kansas and Connecticut on his radar.  Lacey will claim no leaders and he has said he intends on taking all five school visits, so I would not expect a decision anytime soon.

The thing I like about Lacey is that he has a good build and brings a football players mentality to the SG position so he is not afraid to get in there and mix it up for the rebounds.  And he can definitely fill the basket up.  In his first HS game on Saturday night, Lacey scored 50 points and knocked down 9-13 three pointers and grabbed 10 rebounds.

#15 (in 2010) JELAN KENDRICK 

Another possibility is that John Calipari holds on to the 2011 scholarship in case some high profile players transfer and are looking for a new home.  Well, I don’t know how much a possibility for Kentucky he may be in 2011, but Jelan Kendrick’s name is bound to come up.  Kendrick had committed to Memphis, but found himself at odds with Josh Pastner and the Tiger’s staff.  That, will a few off court problems led to a parting between Kendrick and Memphis last week.

We know that John Calipari will not hesitate to take on a player with perceived problems, and we know that at one point, Calipari was recruiting Kendrick to come to Kentucky.  At 6’6, Kendrick is listed as a SF, but he would probably alternate between the 2 and the 3.  Kendrick is currently finishing out the semester in Memphis and would not be eligible to play ball again until next December.  Here is what ESPN has said about Kendrick:

"Kendrick, who is headed to Memphis, had his whole arsenal on display at Mater Dei high school (Nike Extravaganza). This lengthy 3-man has a great feel for the game and an outstanding skill set. He is a smooth operator on the offensive end and despite not being overly quick (long strider) he has a way of getting to the basket. He works the baseline very well and can maneuver quite nicely while getting to the rim. His pull-up jump shot is quite effective and he has a pretty slick handle for his size, but he’ll need to learn to keep his dribble lower because the defensive pressure he’ll face at the next level will definitely intensify. Kendrick is a versatile performer and has the ability to play multiple positions (very good passer), but I would like to see his effort level be more consistent because he has a tendency to play in spurts."

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