NEW YORK – John Calipari may have his best recruiting class ever next season, what with a whopping five five-star recruits.
The question now begs, who will be the best of that group? Skal Labissiere believes he has the answer.
“Malik Monk was one of my teammates (on the Nike EYBL circuit with the Arkansas Wings), and I think he can be the best player on that team,” Labissiere said Wednesday afternoon at NBA Draft Media Day at the Grand Hyatt New York. “He’s a high-flyer, he can really shoot the basketball. He’s athletic, he has hang-time in the air and he’s very competitive. He’s a winner.
“I think he might end up being the best player on that team.”
Whether or not Monk really is the best incoming recruit in Lexington, the fact of the matter is Kentucky is loaded. Monk will be joined by De’Aaron Fox in the backcourt, which will also include former Roselle Catholic Isaiah Briscoe, who opted to return to school for his sophomore season after going through the NBA Draft process.
Fox and Monk won MVP honors at the Jordan Brand Classic in April at Barclays Center, which is where Labissiere and Jamal Murray will be Thursday evening for the NBA Draft.
Bam Adebayo, Wenyen Gabriel and Sacha Killeya-Jones are joining an already-crowded frontcourt that includes Isaac Humphries and Tai Wynyard.
“I haven’t had a chance to talk to many of them, but I know that they’re a great group that can really play,” said Murray, who, like Labissiere, left Kentucky after his freshman season. “I think they have a very strong, balanced team.
“They’re all terrific players. They all get it done and they’re all playing on the same stage, so they have a lot to work with.”
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