John Calipari has done it again bringing yet another top recruiting class to the Bluegrass State. For the third year in a row he has had the best recruiting class in the country. This one though, might be his best composing of four-highly touted McDonalds All American's.
Anthony Davis leads Kentucky stellar recruiting class. If I asked you a year ago about Anthony Davis you would of said, "Who the heck is that?" When Davis was a in his sophmore year in high school, he was a 6'3 point guard and he hadn't played club basketball since junior high. He sprouted 7 inches and the 6'10 Davis is now already being called the potential first overall pick in the 2012 NBA draft. For Perspectives Charter School in Illinos, Davis averaged 32 points, 22 rebounds, and 7 blocks a game. Davis is already a star but coaches love that he has a tremendous upside. Anthony is a big threat of the defensive end of the floor. He is very versatile, as he can defend multiple positions from the quicker, speedy guard to the big men inside. Davis is great on the offensive boards and blocking shots in the paint. John Calipari said about Davis's defense, "Anthony brings a skill level, a Camby-esqueness to him where we can press more and run the lanes more. All I know is this, he probably will per minute [played] lead the nation in blocked shots. That is good for your defense. We will also probably press a lot more next year [because of Davis]. With Josh Harrelson graduating and Terrence Jones declaring for the draft (with no agent yet however), Davis will have to step up and be a huge factor for the Kentucky Wildcats is they want to get back to the final four next year. There will no doubt be a lot of pressure on Davis coming out of high school as the number 1 recruit and the last number one recruit out of the Chiacgo area since 2001. As well as a great post up game, Anthony can also shot. He said, "I get a lot of offensive rebounds and put the ball in. But I also have a good jump shot and I can shoot the 3-point shot well. I didn't have to show an outside shot a lot in high school, but I have one. I can do more than just dunk." Anthony Davis is a monster that will only continue to get better.
For the next Kentucky freshmen, we go to my hometown state of New Jersey, which is filled with tremendous high school basketball players. Michael Gilchrist is definitely one of them. He played for the national powerhouse St. Patrick high school. Gilchrist was very well been coached by Kevin Boyle and has a high basketball IQ. Gilchriist was lucky enough to play with star point guard Kyrie Irving for three years in high school. Gilchrist said, "Kyrie was a huge help for me, on the court and off the court. It was a real honor to play with such a high quality player." The best way to describe Michael Gilchrist is a WINNER. He is a fighter, competitor, and WINNER. Gilchrist was 50-4 since his junior year in high school, leading his team to top 10 finishes two years in a row. Calipari said, "When you look up the definition of 'warrior' in the dictionary, there is a picture of Michael there. No one plays harder or is more competitive. He has a tremendous burning desire to win that will drive practice and elevate everyone within the program." Gilchrist is extremely versatile and does a little bit of everything, as he average 19.4 points, 14.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 5.2 blocks, and 3.5 steals per game in high school as a senior. He is a consistent producer that lead his team in points, rebounds and blocked shots. What stands out about Gilchrist is his ability to rebound the ball and defend. Some superstars are content to put up big scoring numbers and leave the heavy lifting on the other end of the floor to the supporting cast. Gilchrist unbelievable athleticism helps him be a monster on the defensive end. He is so good at blocking shots and can also rebound. The only concern with Gilchrist is his unability to make the three point jump shot consistently but he will definitely continue to improve from behind the arc with hard work.
In a news release John Calipari said, "I'm jacked. These are not just terrific basketball players, but they're terrific students and terrific people, as well. Most importantly, they all have an unbelievable attitude about winning; they all wanted to play together, knowing they're going to have to sacrifice a little bit of their game for their teammates. With this group, it adds to what we already have within our program. These are four of the best, which is what we want to recruit here."
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