Kentucky targets in action at the 2024 Pangos All-American Camp

The 2024 Pangos All-American Camp tipped off Sunday in Las Vegas. 117 of the country’s best high school prospects have gathered at Bishop Gorman to put on a show for the many NBA personnel watching from the bleachers.

Usually, Kentucky has double-digit recruits participating, but with the changing of the guard from John Calipari to Mark Pope, the new staff has (understandably) spent most of the offseason building out the 2024-25 roster as opposed to diving into the high school ranks. Pope and Co. have begun to dip into the pre-college level a bit more over recent weeks, but a lot of the talks remain in the early stages.

However, there are still a handful of familiar names at the Pangos All-American Camp, which continues throughout Monday and Tuesday. The final day is the highlight of the event with the Cream of the Crop games closing things out. Will any of Kentucky’s participating targets play their way into those All-Star-type games?

Here’s who is in Las Vegas right now and has ties to the Wildcats.

Meleek Thomas (’25 SG) 6-3, 175 | Lincoln Park Performing Arts (Pittsburgh, PA)
5-star: No. 6 overall, No. 2 SG

• The old Kentucky staff was high on Meleek Thomas, but Pope and his assistants haven’t kept up the same level of communication so far. As of early May, Thomas had not heard from the new UK coaches. Pope and assistant Alvin Brooks were in attendance for the 2024 USA Basketball Men’s U18 National Team Training Camp last week, where Thomas was participating, but significant traction has yet to be made. For now, Thomas does not appear to be a target moving forward for the ‘Cats.

Brayden Burries (’25 CG) 6-4, 185 | Eleanor Roosevelt (Riverside, CA)
5-star: No. 14 overall, No. 1 CG

• Brayden Burries, on the other hand, is a target for Pope and Kentucky. New assistant Jason Hart reached out to Burries earlier in the spring and the staff has watched him play on the AAU circuit several times. Kentucky has some work to do if they want to pull the West Coast product to the Bluegrass, but Hart’s California connection at least has the Wildcats in the mix.

Tounde Yessoufou (’25 SF) 6-6, 210 | St. Joseph (Santa Maria, CA)
4-star: No. 24 overall, No. 7 SF

• Likely Kentucky’s top recruiting target at this camp, Tounde Yessoufou has improved his stock quite a bit this spring. Pope and his staff watched him play several times in Indianapolis. Yessoufou has spoken highly of the Wildcats as well, calling the program his dream school. Pope has been talking with him directly and their relationship continues to grow. Consider him to be near the top of Kentucky’s 2025 Big Board.

Jerry Easter (’25 CG) 6-4, 185 | La Lumiere School (Toledo, OH)
4-star: No. 28 overall, No. 3 CG

• Jerry Easter is hoping for a Kentucky offer from Pope, although one has yet to officially come in. An impressive showing at Pangos could help change that. Pope and Brooks both watched him play in Indianapolis last month and Easter is eager to continue to talk with the Wildcats going forward.

Gabe Weis (’26 PF) 6-7, 170 | Montverde Academy (Springfield, KY)
4-star: No. 74 overall, No. 11 PF

• The only class of 2026 prospect on our list, Gabe Weis can’t directly hear from Pope or any Kentucky staffers just yet due to NCAA restrictions. But make no mistake, Kentucky is going to get involved with the homegrown prospect. Weis recently moved from Washington County to national powerhouse Montverde Academy (FL) earlier in the offseason.