Kentucky does not make Top 3 for 4-star SG Braylon Mullins

The Kentucky Wildcats are officially out of the race for four-star shooting guard Braylon Mullins.

Mullins announced Tuesday morning that he’s down to three finalists: Indiana, UConn, and North Carolina. Kentucky was at one point firmly in the mix and at times was the perceived leader in this recruitment, but the 6-foot-5 sharpshooter out of Indiana is electing to look elsewhere.

Mullins is considered the No. 22 overall prospect from the 2025 class per the On3 Industry Ranking. He is expected to announce a decision in October.

NEWS: 2025 Top-25 recruit Braylon Mullins has cut his list of schools to three and will commit in October on the On3 Recruits YouTube Channel, he tells @On3Recruits.

The 6-5 Shooting Guard discusses each of his finalists (On3+): https://t.co/Goi0jU9jhc pic.twitter.com/WHkhsDLHgG

— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) September 24, 2024

Mullins’ interest in Kentucky began to shift after Jasper Johnson — also a shooting guard — committed to the Wildcats earlier this month. Mullins had taken an unofficial visit to Lexington over the summer, where he received an offer from head coach Mark Pope at the top of Rupp Arena, and he was scheduled to return for an official visit in late October. That visit will no longer happen.

Pope and his staff made a late push for Mullins over the last few weeks, even popping in to visit him for a workout on multiple occasions. However, a backcourt pairing of Mullins next to Johnson at Kentucky was ultimately not in the cards. And while missing out on the best high school shooter in the country can be tough to swallow, the Wildcats still have options to pivot to.

Namely, Kentucky will turn its full attention to five-star power forward Caleb Wilson (No. 4 in 2025) and four-star point guard Acaden Lewis (No. 34). Wilson is coming off an official visit to UK earlier this month where he made plenty of headlines that has the Big Blue Nation giddy with excitement about the possibility of landing his commitment. He’s close with both Johnson and Lewis, the former playing the role of recruiter since his decision. Malachi Moreno, Pope’s other commitment, is also close with Lewis.

Wilson has tentative plans to make an announcement in either November or December. He still has trips to Central Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, and Arkansas on the schedule — this recruitment is far from over. As for Lewis, he’s down to UConn, Duke, North Carolina, and Kentucky. He took an official visit to UConn over the weekend and plans to OV at UK this fall with a decision aimed for November.