No. 1 Combo Guard Jason Crowe Jr. Has Strong Bonds with the Kentucky Staff

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Jason Crowe Jr. is a top-five player in the country. Realistically, he should have most of the top schools in the nation in pursuit. Yet, for some reason, programs are shying away.

One school seems to be scaring away the others. That’s the Kentucky Wildcats.

“A lot of people aren’t recruiting us because of Kentucky,” Crowe’s father, Jason Crowe Sr., told KSR+. “I’m hearing it a lot. People are saying it’s a waste of time. That’s not true. People are telling me that.”

The reason many perceive Kentucky as the favorite is Crowe Sr.’s relationship with Kentucky assistant Jason Hart. Crowe and Hart go back 30 years, went to Inglewood High School together, and are lifelong friends.

“Jason Hart is one of my best friends,” Crowe said.

Kentucky Has Offered Jason Crowe Jr.

Kentucky has been involved in Crowe’s recruitment ever since Mark Pope’s first staff at UK was formed in the spring. Jason Crowe Sr. was excited his friend Jason Hart got the job as Kentucky’s assistant coach.

“I was happy for him,” Crowe said. “I know the G League Ignite thing wasn’t going to last. Once I figured that out, I wondered what was his next move and where he’d want to go work. Once I found out it was Kentucky, I was very excited for him. It’s a great program and a great culture there.”

Hart extended an offer to Jason Crowe Jr. shortly after joining the Kentucky staff. However, the Crowe family has decided not to publicly post offers.

“We’re sitting here and building something,” Crowe Sr. said. “The mindset that we have is when you work and really develop yourself, you have to bring value. What is blessed to receive when you’re expected to produce value? It’s not a gift. We know what this is. You can’t come to Kentucky with blessed. You have to come to Kentucky to work and you have to help that team win a national championship. Either you’re that player or you’re not. You can play these internet games if you want to.”

With Mark Pope at the helm and Jason Hart alongside him, Kentucky is pitching its vision to the Crowe family. That starts with the culture.

“They’re trying to build the program right now,” Crowe said. “Every new coach has to build the program. The culture was there before him. You know better than me what Kentucky represents, but with them it’s more of a style of play.”

Then there’s the style of play. Pope’s system involves a lot of three-pointers, but it’s more than just that.

“They play a style with Coach Pope where they shoot close to the most threes in the country,” Crowe said. “They like to play an open style with penetration and creation and they like guys who can shoot, create, penetrate, and pass. You can never have too many of those guys if that’s your style.”

What’s Next for Kentucky and Crowe?

Jason Crowe Sr. recently met Mark Pope for the first time. Now, the two are starting to build a relationship. Pope and the staff have talked with Crowe about a visit, but it will have to be an official visit. They’re not taking unofficial visits unless it’s to a local school like USC or UCLA.

“That really helps so that you don’t have to wait until next year to make a decision,” Crowe said. “Hopefully, we’ll find out more and may schedule an official visit if the time works out for both sides. We can build the relationship and see what they have to offer. We’re not going to fly out on our own money on an unofficial. It doesn’t make sense unless we’re in the area. We have things to do here. I’m sure that’s what they meant. We talked to Coach Pope and he wants to get us out here. I’m sure that’s what he meant.”

In the meantime, Pope and the Kentucky staff will come to California to watch Crowe practice in early September. That’s expected on September 4 or 5.

“He’s had offers, but now is the first opportunity where he could actually interact with coaches,” Crowe said. “That’s why I like the process happening now. It has to happen now. It helps freshmen to have a few months to really study the system, build their game, and prepare for that next place. During his junior year, we’re just going through the process of coaches letting us know how he can help them.”

Crowe’s Wider Recruitment

The early recruitment of Jason Crowe Jr. has been an “honest process”, according to his father. There are a lot of schools calling, so they have to be intentional with which schools they consider.

“You have to be respectful of the relationships,” Crowe said. “I’m a coach, so I have other kids. I’m not rude or disrespectful, but I’m honest. I don’t drag coaches on. They prefer me telling them that we appreciate them but don’t have an interest. We know what schools may have an opportunity and we know what we just want to see.”

The schools in contact that Crowe is currently considering are Washington, UCLA, USC, Arkansas, Kentucky, Georgia Tech, TCU, Miami, Villanova, and Kansas. They’ve taken unofficial visits to USC and UCLA, but haven’t taken any official visits.

“We don’t want to go look at the gear, take pictures, and all of that,” Crowe said. “We want to visit when the time permits when we can actually get a chance to experience the campus, see the coaches, and see their program up close and personal in an intimate way.”

Crowe said they’ll probably schedule three or four visits in the fall. Then, they’ll “catch up on the other ones when the time permits.” When evaluating their options, Crowe is looking at compatibility. Style of play plays a big role.

“The point guard position is like a quarterback,” Crowe said. ‘It’s the one position where the style of play matters. If you’re a 6-foot-7 wing, you can adjust to any style. You can play slow, you can shoot your jumper, you play in the half-court, play defense, and whatever you can do. You can adjust to any style at that size.”

For Jason Crowe Jr., that style of play means playing in transition and the half-court. They’re not relegated to one specific offense.

“There has to be space because if you like him and want him, it’s because he’s proven to be one of the most creative players,” Crowe Sr. said. “Offensively, why would we minimize his ability there to be able to create plays?”

All the coaches have a philosophy. The Crowe’s are looking to find which philosophy is compatible.

“Obviously, compatibility also goes to what the players say about how you care for them,” Crowe said. “That doesn’t mean that you yell and you’re tough. That has nothing to do with it. It’s more about making sure that their nutrition, weight development, their classes, who’s watching over them, who’s doing room checks, how those people get along with the kids, and all of those things. It’s college.”

Jason Crowe’s Game

2026 five-star combo guard Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood (CA) is the nation’s No. 5 overall prospect, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. On3 ranks Crowe as the No. 7 player overall, the No. 1-ranked combo guard, and the overall No. 4 best player from California.

Jason Crowe Sr. said his son’s competitiveness, fearlessness, and skills are his greatest strengths. It’s not about his physical abilities.

“He’s not a physical specimen,” Crowe said. “You could easily miss him walking into a room. He’s grown now. He’s 6-4 now, so that’s going to help him. [Jason] started high school at 5-foot-10 and was scoring 40 points per game on one of the top teams in the state. Jason had no physical advantage.”

For the next two years, Crowe is doing everything his father is asking of him to improve. Once he heads to college, he’ll have to develop into an even better defender.

“Right now, he’s adequate,” Crowe said. “He’s not afraid, he’ll match up, and take matchups. That’s not good enough. He needs to be a premier defensive player before he heads to college.”