What DJ Wagner's commitment means for Kentucky

Five-star guard DJ Wagner is a Wildcat, signing with Kentucky to give the program its fifth official addition in 2023. The 6-foot-3 prospect out of New Jersey made his decision public on Monday during the early signing period.

What is Kentucky getting in Wagner? KSR has the breakdown.

John Calipari gets his guy

It’s no secret that DJ Wagner has been atop John Calipari’s wishlist since he emerged as a blue-chip prospect back in grade school. The son of former Memphis star Dajuan Wagner Sr., Calipari’s first one-and-done back in 2001-02, it was a recruitment made for the Kentucky head coach to close on.

Following his standout freshman season at Memphis — he averaged 21.2 points, 3.6 assists and 2.5 rebounds per contest — Wagner Sr. wanted to return to school for another year, but Calipari famously ripped up his scholarship papers and urged him to declare for the 2002 NBA Draft. He was ultimately selected No. 6 overall and signed a $10.7 million rookie deal.

From there, though, the standout guard’s NBA career was cut short due to health and injury issues, specifically after being diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and needing surgery to remove his colon in 2005. Calipari’s decision to push Wagner to the NBA and take the guaranteed money as a likely lottery pick was life-changing for the Camden native. The former Memphis standout has said that he owes his life to Coach Cal for making that call back in the day.

Born in 2005, DJ was there from that point on.

“I love Cal. Cal was my coach,” Wagner Sr. said at an EYBL event this past spring. “Cal, that’s family, you know what I’m saying? … “With Cal — if I’m biased, yes (our relationship has stuck with me) because I know what to expect from Coach Cal. He’s going to get you where you’re supposed to get to, your dream. He’ll be real with you. Off the court, he’s like a father figure to all of us.”

A consensus top-three prospect since his freshman year at Camden, Wagner Jr. had the talent and Calipari had a significant leg-up on the competition.

It was an uncontested layup for Kentucky, at least until Kenny Payne made things interesting at Louisville by hiring the five-star prospect’s grandfather, Milt Wagner, to his staff as a Director of Player Development. Villanova and Memphis also made a slight push, as did the G-League.

As the waters muddied and other programs ramped up their efforts to pull off the upset, Calipari and his staff held the line. They continued to work behind the scenes doing whatever it took to seal the deal on the prized recruit. Today, their short- and long-term efforts were rewarded with a public commitment.

A long list of connections in Lexington

Dajuan Sr.’s relationship with Calipari is the big connection in Lexington, but it’s certainly not the only one.

Walk-on guard Kareem Watkins is Wagner’s “blood brother” and “best friend,” someone the standout recruit leaned on heavily throughout the recruiting process.

“That’s my brother, that’s my blood brother,” Wagner told KSR back in January. “The connection is great. We’re like this [crossed fingers], we’re best friends. That’s my blood brother, our connection is great. … Most definitely (I lean on him), that’s my older brother. He tells me to just do what I want, do what I love to do.”

“That’s my brother, we’re like this [crossed fingers]. Our bond is unbreakable,” Watkins followed up with KSR in June. “We’re just very close. At home, we’re just like any other brothers. We goof around, argue, all that. … I’m just trying to help him out so he can make the best decision for him. It doesn’t really matter what I’m doing. Whatever he wants to do, I’m trying to make sure he picks the best college for him in the future. … Whether it’s Kentucky or anywhere he wants to go.”

Junior forward Lance Ware was also Wagner’s former high school teammate at Camden, closing out his career there while the five-star guard was just getting started.

And those are just the individuals on the roster now. Wagner’s current high school and grassroots teammate Aaron Bradshaw also committed to Kentucky back in October leading up to Big Blue Madness, an event where the entire Camden team (including DJ) rode down to Lexington together on a bus from New Jersey to take in the festivities. Dajuan Sr. coordinated the trip.

They’ve always been on their own journeys and never considered themselves a package deal, but the idea of playing together in college always intrigued the standout duo.

“I would like to play with him. That’s my brother and I really want to play with him,” Bradshaw told KSR this spring. “I like everything about his game. He’s just a great person in general, not a selfish person or anything. Really he’s one of the most selfless people in the world.”

Bradshaw gets his wish, as Wagner is now officially set to join him in Lexington next season.

Kentucky’s “Dream Team” is complete

Wagner is the ultimate prize, Calipari’s top target from the start. Bradshaw was Kentucky’s favorite center in the class and the staff got his recruitment wrapped up in October.

Beyond those two, though, are two other top-10 signees in five-star wing Justin Edwards and five-star guard Rob Dillingham, along with another top-35 addition in Reed Sheppard.

All in all, four players ranked inside the top eight of the On3 Consensus — Nos. 3, 5, 6 and 8. And then factor in Sheppard, ranked No. 31 overall in his own right. It’s a class Dillingham referred to as his “dream team,” with the Wildcats landing every one of the targets he hoped to team up with next season in Lexington.

With those five, Dillingham is confident Kentucky can win a national title, his top goal when he arrives on campus.

“The Dream Team would definitely be DJ (Wagner), Justin (Edwards), Aaron (Bradshaw), and we already know Reed (Sheppard) is there,” Dillingham told KSR at Peach Jam. “Honestly not a super team, but a team that can win a national championship because Kentucky hasn’t won it in a minute. That’s what I hope to bring there, that’s my goal.”

It’s a group of talent that features electric scorers and playmakers in Wagner and Dillingham, an elite two-way threat on the wing in Edwards, a versatile shot-blocking talent down low in Bradshaw and a perfect complementary backcourt piece in Sheppard.

No. 1 recruiting class returns to Lexington

It’s not just a “dream team” by name. It’s by ranking, as well, as Wagner’s addition gives Kentucky the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation, and barring several major surprises and shake-ups, it’ll stay that way through the spring.

It will be the first time John Calipari has signed the No. 1 class since 2020. Before that, UK hadn’t finished first in the country since 2015.

Breaking it down by position, Kentucky managed to land the No. 1 center in Bradshaw, No. 1, No. 2 and No. 7 combo guards in Wagner, Dillingham and Sheppard and the No. 3 small forward in Edwards.

Four top-eight signees and a fifth at No. 31 will certainly do the trick.

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