Cason Wallace, Daimion Collins "locked in" with Kentucky following Jai Lucas' departure

Jai Lucas was known as a Texas whisperer when he first got hired at Kentucky. A native of Houston and a recruiting ace for the Longhorns, the 33-year-old has deep roots in the state. He’s also the son of John Lucas II, who played in the NBA for 14 years and was a head coach for three different teams. The basketball connections are everywhere.

His job when he got to Lexington was to use those roots and connections to recruit the best of the best, with Texas being an obvious place to start. He started by signing five-star forward Daimion Collins out of Atlanta, TX, and then followed it up by signing five-star guard Cason Wallace out of Richardson, TX one year later.

Lucas also took the lead on Sahvir Wheeler and Shaedon Sharpe, while also helping bring in Kentucky’s other top talent, namely TyTy Washington. He made a strong impact in short order, spending two years with the program. Now, though, Lucas will be taking his talents to Kentucky’s greatest blue-blood rival, Duke.

Travis Branham of 247Sports broke the news of Lucas’ departure, with John Calipari later releasing a statement to confirm the report.

“Yesterday, Jai informed me he was taking a promotion at another school,” Calipari said. “I asked where and when he told me Duke, he expected me to be mad. I support what he thinks is best for his family. He’s been loyal, terrific on the road and great for our players, and I want what’s best for him, so I’m good with it.

“I am not surprised that there was interest in Jai because there is always interest in our staff. This year, all of our assistants have been approached about other opportunities. When you have a great staff, that’s what happens!”

Calipari will be tasked with finding a replacement for one of the best young basketball minds in the business, an undeniable hit to the program.

Will he also be tasked with finding replacements for the talent Lucas brought in, as well? That won’t be the case with Cason Wallace and Daimion Collins.

The five-star duo from Texas — who are cousins, mind you — and their families had strong relationships with Lucas during their respective recruitments and liked him as a coach. His presence on the staff, though, isn’t what brought them to Lexington — and it’s certainly not going to make them leave.

“I got a relationship with him on recruiting, but it doesn’t sway anything right or left with Cason,” the five-star guard’s father, Mike Wallace, told KSR. “If Chin and Orlando would’ve recruited him, he still would’ve went there. He didn’t go to Kentucky because of Jai. Jai was just on him before he went to Kentucky, then he bridged that gap. Other than that, no. Cason is Kentucky. He wants to play for Coach Cal.”

“We love Jai, man. We’ve known Jai for a long time. Hate to see him go, but life goes on,” Collins’ father, Ben Collins, added. “When Joel (Justus) left, we went through that then. It’s the same attitude. Ain’t nothing changed with us, man.”

Wallace added that he doesn’t believe Lucas would even try pressuring his son to back out of his commitment. The parties involved are aware that the five-star guard is locked in with the Wildcats.

“I don’t think Jai would want Cason to leave,” he told KSR. “It’s not even in the back of my mind that he’d want Cason to leave. At the end of the day, we’re not going anywhere. Congratulations to Jai, he’s still like family.”

Wallace is rated as the No. 5 overall prospect and No. 1 combo guard in the 2022 On3 Consensus. He chose Kentucky over Tennessee, Texas and UTSA, among 18 total offers.

Collins, the No. 18 overall prospect in the 2021 On3 Consensus, signed with Kentucky over Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech and Kansas out of high school. The 6-foot-10 forward averaged 2.9 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.7 blocks in 7.5 minutes per contest.

Both players are seen as vital pieces for Kentucky in 2022-23. And despite today’s news, both will be suiting up for the Wildcats next season.

“We’re good, he’s straight,” Wallace said. “He’s not going anywhere. We’re locked in. Cason is staying at Kentucky. We’re Kentucky, man. We’re Wildcats.”

“He likes where he’s at and that’s where he wants to be,” Collins added. “This is what we want. We knew coming in he was undersized and was behind the rest of the kids because of where he was from, but we understood. We didn’t make a big deal about it. He’s done a year, he knows what to look for. He’ll be ready when it’s time.”

The freshman forward is no rush to leave Kentucky, now or in the coming years. However long it takes to get ready for the next level, Collins’ father says they will remain patient.

“He signed a four-year scholarship,” he told KSR. “If it takes four years, it takes four years. If it takes two years, it takes two years. It’s not a big deal to us, man. When he thinks he’s ready, that’s what we’re going to go by.”

Jai Lucas may be leaving, but his prized recruits aren’t going anywhere.