Team USA coaches tell KSR what Kentucky is getting in Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno

Just how good will Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno be at Kentucky, both now and down the road? KSR caught up with two Team USA coaches, Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland and Notre Dame’s Micah Shrewsberry — assistants for the 2025 FIBA U19 Men’s World Cup in Switzerland under Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd — to get their thoughts after coaching both at the U19 National Team Training Camp in Colorado Springs last week.

Mark Pope said the pair of in-state freshmen were “jaw-dropping great” in the event after working with them hands-on as a court coach for a couple of days.

“Both those guys — man, what a show they put on,” he told KSR. “They were both incredible.”

An outsider could argue he watches through blue-tinted glasses, though — of course he’s going to hype up his guys, right? Fair or not, folks outside of Big Blue Nation are going to take those comments with a grain of salt. That’s why we’re leaning on totally unbiased attendees to share their respective opinions on the Wildcats.

We’ll start with Johnson, ranked No. 25 nationally and No. 9 among shooting guards in 2025 — and just made the final 12-member USA roster for the FIBA World Cup. He won a gold medal with USA across his chest last summer, and now, he’s going back to Switzerland with a similar goal before making his way back home to Lexington.

“His experience playing on the U18 team, I think showed especially early,” McCasland told KSR in Colorado Springs. “When he played with us originally, he really was hunting shots and was more of a straight two guard. What I’ve really been impressed with is — one, he’s always been coachable, but he’s increased his ability to learn and grow and the willingness to hear everything you have to say and try to do it. Defensively, he’s competing, but offensively, his composure level, his ability to make the next play, and his ownership in winning really has been tremendous.

“He’s gotten better — and I don’t mean just a little bit. I think Jasper — he’s always been a shot-maker and an elite scorer, but I think his composure level offensively has really grown. I’ve been really impressed with him.”

“I thought from having him last year and then going into this year, I thought he made a huge jump, especially in his class,” Shrewsberry added. “Even though he made the team last year, I thought his play this year really picked up. He was aggressive making shots, aggressive attacking the rim. I thought he made really good plays as a passer, as well, which is really good to see as we watch the growth of his game keep going up.”

In terms of a day-one impact, both coaches believe that Johnson is in a system and environment at Kentucky playing for Coach Pope that should not only allow him to play early, but thrive early.

“I’ve played against Coach Pope’s teams when he was at BYU and their pace and their flow — they’ve got guys that can make shots and break games open,” McCasland said. “I just think his ability to score and shoot and get fouled in that system is going to be extremely hard to guard. It feels like the more he plays, the better he gets, and they compete and get up and down enough that those possessions will really, really highlight who he is as a player.”

“I know how Coach Pope loves those guys that make shots, so him been able to shoot it in and shoot it from deep, shoot it off the dribble, with a lot of guys that can attack off the bounce around him, as well — he’s going to compete,” Shrewsberry continued. “He’s going to play hard, he’s going to be able to make shots, he’s going to be a good player.”

Moreno was an injury withdrawal during the first round of cuts, but undoubtedly helped himself in Colorado Springs, emerging as one of the best bigs in attendance before rejoining the Wildcats in Lexington. Ranked No. 1 in 2025 among centers, he looked the part against returning collegiate players and 2026 standouts at his position.

“Malachi has gotten better. His activity around the rim has always been good, but I think his composure level with the ball has improved,” McCasland told KSR. “I mean, he kind of took the easy way out the first time I worked with him. This time, I thought he was putting his nose in the middle of it more often. I love where he’s at. His shot-blocking at the rim, and his ability to finish has gotten better. His hands and rebounding, and just the activity level he’s playing with, he’s grown. Those guys have made huge jumps, in my opinion, from last year, when we worked with him.”

“I thought he played really well. He was very active around the basket with his rebounding, with his post-ups, blocking shots,” Shrewsberry added. “That’s an area where I think he’s really grown in his game. He’s always been skilled where he stepped out and made shots. He’s a good passer, right? Which is something that I know Kentucky loves to do with those bigs, so he’ll fit in with those guys because of that skill level that he has. If he keeps adding that presence around the rim like that, he’s going to be a really good player.”

What are the Wildcats getting in the Georgetown native from day one? His character stands out right away, his USA coaches seeing a likable player others gravitate toward in the locker room — and then the talent speaks for itself.

“I mean, he’s such a great teammate. Every day you show up, with a guy like Malachi, everybody’s going to love playing with him. That, to me, is how you grow a team and win. You get guys that everybody wants to be around every day, and he’s just got an infectious personality,” McCasland continued. “He’s genuine in who he is as a person. His activity level defensively always can keep him on the floor, and his best days are ahead of him. In regards to his offense and skill, he made a three in our scrimmages, and he’s just getting more confident playing on the perimeter.

“But he’s always going to earn his keep rebounding, defending, being a great, elite player around the basket, and being a guy that plays with a ton of energy.”

Will he be able to carve out a role in the rotation right away? His performance in Colorado Springs competing against the best of the best leads Shrewsberry to believe he’s got a real shot.

“Yeah, I think so,” he told KSR. “Playing in these environments, that’s something that gets you prepared a little bit more, right? It’s not college, but it’s about as close as you can get to college, coming to this where all of these guys are going to be high-major guys and really good players.

“Getting this experience should give him some confidence going back to campus, preparing for the rest of the summer.”

Pope may be hyperbolic at times, but he wasn’t this week at USA U19 Training Camp: Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno looked the part.