Plenty of top-ranked recruits plan to visit Kentucky for Big Blue Madness

John Calipari is hoping for a revitalized showing of Big Blue Madness this year, pointing back to the first few years of his tenure in Lexington and the hype that surrounded the annual preseason event. The Kentucky head coach not only wants to re-engage the fan base with plenty of flare and entertainment, but he also wants to impress a very talented group of high school prospects.

Big Blue Madness expects to play host this year to plenty of the nation’s top recruits, a couple of them already committed to the Wildcats. There are major storylines to pay attention to as well, with some of the visiting recruits on the cusp of potentially making a final decision.

Below is your one-stop-shop for all of the expected visitors that KSR has learned of for this year’s Big Blue Madness, which is set for Friday, Oct. 14 at 7:00 p.m. EST inside of Rupp Arena. The event will also be streamed live on the SEC Network.

*This list will be updated throughout the week until Big Blue Madness tips off on Friday night. All player rankings are courtesy of the On3 Consensus.*

Class of 2023 visitors

DJ Wagner (CG) 6-3, 165 | Camden (Camden, NJ)
5-star: No. 1 overall, No. 1 CG

• What is there left to say about DJ Wagner that hasn’t already been said a thousand times? The shifty 6-foot-3 guard was preordained as a future Wildcat from the moment he was born. Up the road, a pair of well-timed hirings nearly flipped the entire script down the stretch, but Wagner is Kentucky’s to lose at this point. Him signing with Nike earlier in the week is a very telling sign. There is no sense of a possible decision date, but considering he still hasn’t scheduled a visit to Louisville, the writing appears to be on the wall. Wagner is about to take his second trip to Big Blue Madness, the first coming last year.

Justin Edwards (SF) 6-7, 180 | Imhotep Institute (Philadelphia, PA) KENTUCKY COMMIT
5-star: No. 3 overall, No. 1 SF

• The current prize of Calipari’s 2023 class is the lanky and athletic wing Justin Edwards. The five-star prospect spurned Tennessee for the ‘Cats as Calipari took over the recruitment. Edwards is a future NBA player who provides plenty of value on both ends of the floor. His defense is already top in his class; his offense is where he can take another leap into potential superstardom.

Aaron Bradshaw (C) 7-1, 210 | Camden (Rahway, NJ)
5-star: No. 7 overall, No. 2 C

• Longtime teammates with Wagner in high school and on the AAU circuit, Aaron Bradshaw is practically a household name for the Big Blue Nation at this point. His recruitment has been directly linked to Wagner’s as the two New Jersey natives have been connected to many of the same colleges, most notably Kentucky and Louisville. Bradshaw has set a commitment date for Nov. 16 and is trending towards picking the ‘Cats as we head down the final stretch of his recruitment. He nearly chose UK earlier in the summer but decided to evaluate all of his options just a bit longer. A good time at Big Blue Madness might put the nail in the coffin — it’ll be his second trip to Lexington since June.

Reed Sheppard (CG) 6-2, 170 | North Laurel (London, KY) KENTUCKY COMMIT
4-star: No. 27 overall, No. 6 CG

• The legacy commit out of eastern Kentucky, Reed Sheppard is no stranger to the Big Blue Madness atmosphere. He’ll return once again on Friday as he morphs into a recruiter for the program. Sheppard has already been doing vocal in his attempts to bring other talented prospects to Kentucky — let’s see if he can help close on a couple of them.

Class of 2024 visitors

Ian Jackson (SG) 6-5, 180 | Cardinal Hayes (Bronx, NY) Offered by Kentucky
5-star: No. 2 overall, No. 2 SG

• Aside from Wagner, Ian Jackson is the next most important visitor for Calipari and company. The 6-foot-5 guard has been rumored as a possible reclass candidate to 2023, although nothing has been set in stone. Regardless, he’s one of the top floor generals in the country and would bring an immediate jolt of talent to any roster no matter which year he comes to college. Jackson was the very first ’24 prospect to earn an offer from the Wildcats and he’ll be met with the Blue Carpet treatment on Friday.

Airious “Ace” Bailey (PF) 6-9, 185 | McEachern (Powder Springs, GA) Offered by Kentucky
5-star: No. 6 overall, No. 1 PF

• The most recent ’24 prospect to publicly announce an offer from Kentucky, Airious “Ace” Bailey received a visit from Calipari last month and quickly earned a scholarship. Bailey is being heavily recruited by the Auburn Tigers, which got him on campus shortly after UK offered in September. This will be his first trip to Lexington.

Karter Knox (SF) 6-5, 180 | Tampa Catholic (Tampa, FL) Offered by Kentucky
5-star: No. 7 overall, No. 2 SF

• Well-known now as the younger brother of former Wildcat Kevin Knox, Karter Knox is being pulled by two different programs, both of which hold ties to him and his family. Obviously, Kentucky was the one-year college home of Kevin, while Louisville’s new head coach, Kenny Payne, was Kevin’s assistant while at UK. Both schools are recruiting Karter heavily; he’ll visit Louisville the weekend after Big Blue Madness. LSU, Auburn, and Kansas are also involved with the five-star wing.

Travis Perry (PG) 6-1, 170 | Lyon County (Eddyville, KY) Offered by Kentucky
3-star: No. 95 overall, No. 19 PG

• An in-state talent who impressed the coaching staff over the summer was Lyon County’s Travis Perry, which led to a scholarship from the ‘Cats in late June. He’s since added offers from the likes of Ohio State, Michigan, Stanford, and Vanderbilt, taking a visit last month to the campuses of Michigan and Purdue.

Class of 2025 visitors

Jasper Johnson (PG) 6-3, 155 | Woodford County (Versailles, KY)
4-star: No. 26 overall, No. 4 PG

• Woodford County product Jasper Johnson picked up an offer from Ohio State earlier this month, adding to his growing list of Divison I offers (which includes Alabama). Doubling as a star quarterback on the gridiron, Johnson is a consensus four-star sophomore hooper in the country. Kentucky hasn’t offered him yet and it might still be a little early for one to come through, but the local prospect is on the Wildcats’ radar and will join the Big Blue Madness fun.