Kentucky staff will visit Adem Bona on Monday

The recruitment of five-star center Adem Bona is coming down the final stretch, and Kentucky is going to have its shot to make one last pitch.

According to KSR’s Jack Pilgrim, Wildcat head coach John Calipari will take a trip to California on Monday for an in-person visit with Bona, a class of 2022 big man who is down to Kentucky and UCLA. Bona is coming off an official visit to UCLA over the weekend.

Kentucky will be in to see 2022 five-star center Adem Bona on Monday, multiple sources tell KSR.

Coming off an official visit to UCLA.

— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) October 24, 2021

Where Bona stands in his recruitment

Kentucky was once perceived as the clear favorite to land Adem Bona, but UCLA has gained a ton of ground in recent months and, depending on who you ask, might have the upper hand. A combined total of six picks logged by experts at 247Sports and Rivals have come out since the beginning of October, all of them with Bona choosing UCLA.

But Kentucky is not out of the running by any means, and Calipari is going to give Bona a lot to think about between Monday’s visit and his eventual decision. Bona took an official visit to Kentucky during the weekend of Oct. 1.

As for when he might decide, Travis Branham of 247 Sports reported on Sunday afternoon that Bona is done taking visits and a decision will be made “in the coming weeks.”

Kentucky currently holds commitments from three class of 2022 recruits, all of them tabbed as top 25 prospects: Shaedon Sharpe (No. 1, per On3), Chris Livingston (No. 4), and Skyy Clark (No. 21). UK is also considered the leader for Cason Wallace, another five-star ranked No. 7 in the country, who will announce his college home on Nov. 7.

Landing Bona would likely give Kentucky the top recruiting class in the country (if Wallace commits, as well), but missing out on the 6-foot-9 big man won’t be the end of the world. The transfer market will continue to be an option for Calipari and the ‘Cats moving forward.