The Nike Hoop Summit did Kentucky signees Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno wrong

Imagine spending the week in Portland, separating as an early standout in competitive practices and scrimmages, only to be limited to five minutes in the 2025 Nike Hoop Summit. That was the reality for Jasper Johnson, previously snubbed in the McDonald’s All-American Game, setting up this prestigious event as a potential showcase for his talents on the world stage after the majority of his teammates and opponents already got their run in Brooklyn two weeks ago.

He’ll play in the Jordan Brand Classic on April 18 and the Iverson Classic on May 3, but this is widely seen as the most competitive event of that group — one the future Wildcat undoubtedly had his eye on.

The early-week returns were extremely positive, thriving in front of NBA scouts and stacking highlights in an expanded role that allowed him to comfortably get his game off.

.@KentuckyMBB bound Jasper Johnson has a smooth game 😮‍💨

The 6’4” lefty can get to the rim whenever he wants @nikehoopsummit pic.twitter.com/mVOZShadDF

— SportsCenter NEXT (@SCNext) April 11, 2025

Then we got the Duke Showcase featuring AJ Dybantsa once the event actually tipped off, Cameron Boozer playing 38 minutes and Dybantsa playing 35 while Arkansas signee Darius Acuff played 29 and Louisville signee Mikel Brown Jr. played 24 among starters. Then you have Duke’s Cayden Boozer and Nikolas Khamenia combining for 33 minutes with Michigan signee Trey McKenney playing 20.

For whatever reason, USA head coach Frank Bennett went with a seven-man group and five players taking at least nine shots — three with at least 13. And it wasn’t a product of some dominant performance, Team World taking an early double-digit lead before a USA comeback and near-choke late turned a 14-point lead with four minutes to go into an overtime finish.

USA pulled away in the extra period, but it wasn’t the prettiest performance of all time.

That top-heavy rotation led to Johnson playing just five minutes, going 0-4 from the field with one rebound to wrap up his box score. As for fellow Kentucky signee Malachi Moreno, he played just eight minutes and didn’t get a single shot attempt up, adding three rebounds and one steal with two turnovers to put a bow on his performance.

Others had plenty to complain about, too, uncommitted prospect Nate Ament playing 11 minutes with zero shot attempts while Houston signee Chris Cenac Jr. played seven minutes.

We’re not looking to hand out participation trophies, obviously, understanding how a rotation works — and also getting why USA Basketball would want to put a spotlight on the big-name talents for basketball politics. At the end of the day, though, it’s an all-star event — one of the last for all of these kids before they begin their college basketball careers.

The Kentucky boys got screwed in Portland on Saturday night.