Five-star junior Jason Asemota commits to Baylor

If you had five-star wing Jason Asemota on your Kentucky basketball recruiting board for 2024, go ahead and take him off. This evening, the 6-foot-8 forward made a surprise commitment to Baylor, the program’s first pledge in the junior class.

Asemota, ranked No. 13 overall in the On3 Consensus, previously cut his list to Memphis, LSU, Arizona State, Stanford, Ohio State, Kansas, Oregon and Baylor. Kentucky reached out to the standout prospect to open the direct contact period in June, but never ramped things up from there.

Instead, the Bears emerged as the heavy favorite and soon secured the early commitment.

“Baylor was all in on me from the very beginning and showed me that I’m their number 1 priority rather than just telling me I am,” Asemota told On3. “I love everything Baylor has to offer and I fit their playing style very well. Everything just feels right with Baylor.”

What is Baylor getting in the Hillcrest Prep star?

“A player who works hard and wants to buy into the program and wants to win and be a great teammate,” he said.

Kentucky did not ultimately extend an offer to Asemota before his list cut. The program has, however, offered the likes of Boogie Fland, Tahaad Pettiford, Travis Perry, Ian Jackson, Tre Johnson, Isaiah Elohim and Karter Knox in the class of 2024.

Asemota and Kentucky had early mutual interest, but instead, he’s decided to go with the Bears.