Kentucky Wildcats Basketball Recruiting: The WBN talks with 2014 Recruit Stanley Johnson’s Coach

Nov 23, 2012; Lexington , KY, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari watches his team during the game against the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds at Rupp Arena. Kentucky defeated LIU Brooklyn 104-75. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-US PRESSWIRE

Kentucky’s 2013 class looks to be ALMOST done, and its already one of the best in the history of college basketball some think. They will still probably add one or two more, and that would make it the best ever in college basketball history. 2014 is loaded as well and John Calipari is already recruting some of the top notch players in that class. One of those names is Stanley Johnson from Fullerton, CA and attends Mater Dei High School. ESPN ranks him as the 21st best player in the class of 2014, but most people say he deserves to be top 15 or even top 10. I had to a chance to catch up with his high school coach Gary Mcknight to talk about Stanley, and what makes him such a special player.

WBN: What is the one aspect of Stanley’s game that makes him one of the nation’s best high school players?

Coach Mcknight: He is 6-7 and very power, he squatted 360 8 times and can shoot the ball very well from the outside. He is very intelligent on the floor and has a great feel for the game. As a freshman he had 15 rebounds in the state title game. Now, stepping into this year he is the go to guy for us. I say he is the go to guy because he can play all 5 spots on the floor and is extremely explosive.

WBN: Who’s game would you most compare Stanley’s to?

Coach Mcknight: I would most compare him to Charles Barkley. One reason I say that is because he has huge hands and being 6-7 with huge hands is a skill that Charles had.

WBN: What schools have contacted him the most?

Coach Mcknight: California, Arizona, UCLA, USC, UNLV, Duke, NC State, and Kentucky.

WBN: I noticed that a lot of west coast schools are on his list, will location have any influence on his decision?

Coach Mcknight: Yes, alot of west coast schools have contacted him, but thats because he is out on the west coast so they get more of a chance to look at him. The location doesn’t really matter he wants to go where he fits the best. Arizona and Kentucky’s presentations really stuck out the most to him, and I think he is getting tired of the whole recruting process. I would say you may see a decision in the spring.

Since we had this interview about Stanley he cut his list to 15 schools. Those were Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Florida State, Kentucky, Louisville, Missouri, NC State, Oregon, SDSU, Stanford, UCLA, UNLV, USC, and Washington.

It looks like we may be farther away from a decision than we thought, but I think Kentucky and Arizona are leaders for Stanley’s services. Can John Calipari get another top prospect from the west coast? We will see.

Below is the official mixtape from ballislife.com of Stanley Johnson. He is a beast!!!!