Jasper Johnson cuts list to five, includes Kentucky

Kentucky remains in contention for 2025 five-star guard and Lexington native Jasper Johnson with a commitment right around the corner.

Johnson, the No. 11 overall prospect in the rising senior class, is down to five schools: Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisville, and North Carolina. He announced his finalists on Wednesday.

Recently announcing his transfer to Overtime Elite in Atlanta to close out his high school career, Johnson has taken official visits to Alabama, Kentucky and North Carolina. He was at Rupp Arena this week to watch UK’s alumni squad, La Familia, in The Basketball Tournament.

Johnson told KSR at Peach Jam a college commitment was coming “in the next month or so,” breaking down the finalists previously hosting him on official visits — the trio emerging as the perceived top contenders coming down the home stretch of his recruitment.

Alabama: “Coach (Nate) Oats, they produce every year at the guard position. They give their guards a lot of freedom, take a lot of threes. And they play defense, as well. Coach Oats has been recruiting me since my eighth-grade summer, going into my freshman year. They were the first Power Five school to offer me, so we’ve been building a relationship for a long time now.”

Kentucky: “Coach (Mark) Pope is telling me he wants me to be the first recruit to start his recruiting class in 2025. He’s always pitching to me he wants to hang a banner, so coming in and making a big impact from day one. He’s telling me he wants me to come in and have a big role on their team. Hearing that is good.”

North Carolina: “Growing up watching basketball, there are lot of great players with great basketball everywhere. Just watching them growing up as a kid, I was always very interested in their program. To see that they’re recruiting me now, it’s a great opportunity and a blessing. (They’re saying) that they really want me to be the first commit and take that guard position.”

Johnson said he hoped to take “maybe one or two more” visits ahead of his commitment, those potentially going to Arkansas and Louisville. It’s unclear, however, if those will be finalized in time with a decision expected in late August.

Can Coach Pope keep the prized in-state prospect home? We’ll find out soon.