John Calipari visits D.J. Wagner and Aaron Bradshaw in New Jersey

John Calipari was in attendance to see two of his future Kentucky standouts in New Jersey, a pitstop on the team’s trip to New York City for the CBS Sports Classic this weekend.

The UK head coach checked out five-star teammates D.J. Wagner and Aaron Bradshaw in Camden High School’s 91-50 season-opening victory over Rancocas Valley.

Wagner paced the Panthers with 17 points, three assists and two rebounds, while Bradshaw added a double-double himself, finishing with 15 points, 15 rebounds, one block and one steal in the blowout win.

It was a highlight-filled affair for the future Wildcats, with a few of those on display in the quick reel below:

Coach Cal pulled up to watch No.1 Ranked DJ Wagner pic.twitter.com/voyUvLVRol

— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) December 16, 2022

See for yourself with the complete game replay below:

Calipari opened the week with a trip to Louisville to see Justin Edwards take on Reed Sheppard in the Kentucky Play-By-Play Classic. The former finished with 15 points and 12 rebounds in a 59-54 victory for Imhotep Charter while the latter added 14 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds in the loss for North Laurel.

From there, a trip to Atlanta to see Rob Dillingham in person at the Overtime Elite facilities. The coaches sat down with the future Wildcat guard to talk over future goals and what’s in store for him personally the rest of this season at OTE, with that season lasting through February.

And then to close out his top-rated recruiting class, a flight to New Jersey to see Wagner and Bradshaw.

“I have known D.J. his entire life and I’ve always wanted to coach him. Above all he is a competitor,” Calipari said of Wagner to close out the early signing period. “He attacks the offensive end and is a versatile scorer, but he is equally as tough on defense. I love the spirit he’ll bring to practice every day, and I love that he wanted to be at Kentucky. He knows that to get the best of himself, he needs to be surrounded by other talented players who are going to match his competitive energy.”

“The most impactful trait we can have on the defensive end is the ability to block shots, and Aaron is elite at that,” Calipari added of Bradshaw. “He also has all of the tools that a versatile big in today’s game needs. Aaron’s motor continues to improve, he has great size and mobility. As a 7-footer, he can change the game on both ends of the court. He has a high ceiling and has only begun to scratch the surface of the kind of player he can be.”

That doesn’t conclude his recruiting visits for the week. Following Kentucky’s game vs. UCLA at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, the coaching staff is sticking around in New York to check out 2024 five-star guard Ian Jackson, who plays on Sunday afternoon. His Cardinal Hayes (NY) squad is set to take on Christ The King (NY), which features Carmelo Anthony’s son, Kiyan.

With Jackson inching closer toward a final decision, Kentucky is looking to close on the 6-foot-5 guard out of The Bronx, the program’s top target in the class.

Recruiting season is here.