Are the Kentucky Wildcats a real possibility for Jahlil Okafor?

Apr. 3, 2013; Chicago, IL, USA; Varsity basketball team member Jahlil Okafor poses at Whitney M. Young Magnet High School in Chicago. Okafor, a 6 foot 10 inch junior who plays the center position, is poised to become one of the top basketball recruits for college teams in the country. Mandatory Credit: Guy Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports

Alan told us last night that 2014’s Jahlil Okafor will be making a visit to Lexington the weekend of September 9th. Don’t think that is a randomly picked date by Okafor as it is also the weekend of the UK NBA Alumni game. It’s no secret that Okafor wants to play at the next level and Okafor’s AAU coach Mike Irvin thinks that Kentucky can be a viable option and that Kentucky has “always been on Okafor’s radar”.

"“That’s what Cal thought of,” Irvin said. “That’s one reason why Kentucky is on that list, these kids want to play in the NBA and they know Cal is good at what he do, getting kids to the next level. “When (Okafor) comes down there and sees all that star power and all those NBA players, that will definitely make a kid think Kentucky.” Since Calipari took over at UK, 17 of his players have been drafted, including 13 in the first round. Irvin could see Okafor having a DeMarcus Cousins-like impact while he’s in college. “Yeah, him and DeMarcus Cousins, sure I can see that comparison,” Irvin said. “They both can score that ball at a high value. Jahlil might be a little bigger and a little taller but one thing Jahlil can do is he can score on the block. Anytime you need a bucket, you know, he’s one of the best low post scorers I’ve seen in a long time. Him and Cousins, they can put in the basket.” Ultimately, Okafor wants to have a college experience similar to Cousins’: play on a top-rated team throughout the season and be one of the NBA’s top draft picks. “Coach Cal won a national championship and (he’s) sending guys out to the pros so eventually (Okafor) want to be an NBA player,” Irvin said. “Cal is doing the best coaching to get kids to the next level. It’s been a school he’s always looked at.”"

Granted, the rumors swirl that he and Tyus Jones will be a package deal at Duke.  Duke is still the leader but don’t count out Kentucky and as stated in the article, Jone could announce at one of his school visits if it is the right fit.  Here is video of Okafor discussing his top schools with Dave Telep.  

Jul 18, 2013; Washington, DC, USA; Team USA South player Devin Booker (9) dribbles the ball against Team Pan-Africa during the Nike Global Challenge at Trinity University in Washington, DC. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

As we have talked about before, Devin Booker is one of those players who has had a meteoric rise and become a top college prospect seemingly out of nowhere. The SG from Mississippi has an offer from John Calipari and Kentucky and due to other schools cooling on Booker due to getting other commits, Kentucky may be in pretty good shape. Regardless, Booker will probably announce in the early signing period.

"The NCAA’s early signing period begins on Nov. 13, and Melvin Booker said he doesn’t anticipate his son’s final decision coming at any time “past November.” Though Devin has not yet publicly named any favorites, he admitted that Duke and North Carolina might have cooled on him as they have filled their precious few recruiting slots with other players at his position. “Whenever I feel like the right school is the right school, that’s when I’ll (commit and sign),” Booker said. “I feel like if a school wants me bad enough, they’ll make it happen. The schools that are recruiting me right now have told me that if I really want to go there, they have a spot for me. (Duke and North Carolina) are still recruiting me, and I think if I want to go there I still could, but I want to go with the coaches who have shown me the most interest. And ever since (Duke and North Carolina) got their new (commitments), I haven’t seen much of that.”"

Jan 21, 2013; Syracuse, NY, USA; ESPN broadcaster Jay Bilas looks on prior to the game between the Cincinnati Bearcats and the Syracuse Orange at the Carrier Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

It’s not a Kentucky story per se, but whenever a national sports personality spends most of the afternoon clowning the NCAA, it deserves mention in the Morning 5. With all the fuss over Johnny Manziel and the recent lawsuits by players against the NCAA, Jay Bilas performed a little experiment. Fed up with the lie the NCAA perpetuates that it does not profit off specific players, Bilas went to the website and started typing in players names in the search engine and low and behold, merchandise with the players numbers popped up.

Imagine that.

"Yep, that’s proof that it’s possible to go into the search engine of ShopNCAASports.com, type the name “Johnny Manziel” and end up on a page filled with items connected to Texas A&M and Manziel’s jersey number despite the NCAA’s long insistence that specific jerseys for sale aren’t connected to specific players. Bilas did the same thing with Alabama’s A.J. McCarron, Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater, Clemson’s Tajh Boyd and a slew of other players. It was incredible to watch unfold … for as long as it lasted. Best I could tell, Bilas was prepared to go all day. But a funny thing happened about two hours after Bilas started the experiment. Suddenly, the ShopNCAASports.com search engine was disabled, presumably by somebody who realized the governing body was getting embarrassed in a pretty public way. Well done, Mr. Bilas. Well done."