What Boogie Fland's commitment means for Kentucky

Five-star point guard Johnuel “Boogie” Fland is a Kentucky Wildcat as of Friday morning. He’s the second class of 2024 pledge for head coach John Calipari, joining four-star center Somto Cyril. Kentucky now has the fifth-ranked 2024 recruiting class and tops in the SEC according to On3. What does Fland’s commitment mean for the Wildcats both now and moving forward? Let’s find out together.

For the immediate future, Fland’s commitment gives Calipari his lead guard in this cycle. Kentucky is not heavily recruiting many other guard prospects from the 2024 class outside of five-star shooting guard VJ Edgecombe and four-star point guard Travis Perry. Barring a reclass from someone in 2025 (which is a real possibility), there might not be any other backcourt options that Kentucky feels are worth a real look.

Fland gives Calipari a necessary piece to the puzzle for the 2024-25 roster in the backcourt. Depending on what happens with the current batch of UK guards, Fland could be a vital piece for next season’s team.

Looking at the state of Kentucky’s 2023-24 backcourt, five-star freshman DJ Wagner is all but assured to leave for the NBA after one season in college while veteran sharpshooter Antonio Reeves is in his last year of college eligibility. Elsewhere, freshmen guards Robert Dillingham and Reed Sheppard could go either way after this season. Dillingham is more likely to bolt for the NBA if he has a solid freshman season, while Sheppard is most likely to return barring an overwhelmingly impressive rookie campaign.

If one of those two leaves (or worst-case scenario, both leave), that would put Calipari thin at guard. If both happen to stay, Calipari would be in shape to field one of the nation’s top backcourts in ’24-25. Regardless of how it plays out, Fland will make for an excellent replacement piece next season that would fit in the mold of what Wagner expects to bring to UK this season.

Kentucky should expect to bring back freshman Joey Hart and sophomore Adou Thiero as well for next season, but Hart is unproven while Thiero continues to grow into more of a wing than a pure ball handler. Fland is someone Calipari will want to put in a lead guard role from day one. The transfer portal will always remain an option too if Kentucky doesn’t land any more high school guards and needs to fill out the remaining backcourt spots.

What Boogie Fland Brings to Kentucky

Once he arrives in Lexington, Fland will bring plenty of energy, smiles, and leadership along with him. He’s an enthusiastic and exciting player from Harlem, NY, who likes to show off his game through some playmaking flair and tough shot-making. He is not short on confidence when it comes to shooting the ball (think similar to Dillingham), but there aren’t many guards more consistent in all areas of their game in the ’24 class than Fland.

KSR’s Brandon Ramsey describes Fland as “a score-first point guard with elite shot-making ability off of the dribble. The 6’3” guard creates separation consistently with a tight handle, great pace, and quick-twitch change of direction. His scoring ability is what made him into a five-star prospect, but his all-around playmaking ability is what elevated him to become the number one point guard in the Class of 2024.”

With a score-first mentality, Fland is a bit of a tweener at 6-foot-3, 175 pounds, but his primary position is at the point. He’s strong enough to make tough shots from all over the floor and is a capable passer. For the PSA Cardinals on the EYBL circuit over the summer, he averaged 15.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.7 steals per game on shooting splits of 43.5/33.3/77.5 prior to Peach Jam. For his high school, Archbishop Stepinac, he put up averages of 18.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.0 steals per game during his junior season in 2022-23 on shooting splits of 41.8/34.6/81.8.

This recruitment came down to a battle between Kentucky and Indiana. The Hoosiers were long thought to be the frontrunner and that was still the case at the beginning of the week. But Calipari once again proved that, when he wants his guy, he’s tough to beat. Mike Woodson just learned that the hard way.