Jasper Johnson presses Jason Crowe Jr. about Kentucky connections in 1-on-1 interview

Jasper Johnson is doing a little recruiting while in Colorado Springs for the USA Basketball U19 Training Camp. Krysten Peek shared a video of the incoming Kentucky freshman interviewing five-star guard Jason Crowe Jr., one of the Cats’ top prospects in the 2026 class. Knowing Crowe’s connection to Kentucky assistant coach Jason Hart, Johnson didn’t go easy on him.

Crowe’s father, Jason Crowe Sr., and Hart are lifelong friends, going back over 30 years to their days at Inglewood High School. In previous interviews, Crowe Jr. has said Hart is like an uncle to him, and having him on Mark Pope’s staff makes him look at Kentucky in a different light; however, the Cats aren’t alone in his recruitment. Crowe Jr. told Johnson that Alabama, Kentucky, Baylor, and USC are his top schools right now; that’s all Johnson needed to jump into his line of questioning.

“Okay, I heard that second school: University of Kentucky. I hear you’re family with Coach Jason Hart, right?” Johnson said, which Crowe Jr. confirmed. “Does that have anything to do with your commitment coming down the line, family and trust?”

“For sure, you know what I’m saying. You’ve got to keep that family aspect in play. If you can’t trust family, who can you trust? But I’m also giving other schools fair play.”

Johnson, a Kentucky native whose family has long been associated with UK, would not be deterred.

“Why do you give other schools fair play if they’re not family?”

“I mean, all these schools are great schools. They all have great coaching staffs. Also, Kentucky has a great coaching staff as well. But you know what I’m saying. With this recruitment, you can’t be blindsided just because it’s family. You’ve got to go with where best fits you.”

Johnson tried a different approach, asking Crowe Jr. about his game. The 6’3″ 170 shooting guard leads the Nike EYBL circuit in scoring at 23.8 points per game and is considered the No. 6 player in the 2026 class in the On3 Industry Ranking. He told Johnson that he could see himself playing in Mark Pope’s system.

“It for sure fits around my play style. Y’all shoot a lot of threes, I shoot a lot of threes, know what I’m saying? I play fast, you all play with a good pace. It is a good school that I can see myself in, but I’m also giving other schools fair chances because those schools play with a fast pace as well.”

Even though Crowe Jr. said his favorite color is red, Johnson clearly wants the 2026 star in blue. Having Mark Pope as one of the assistant coaches at the training camp certainly doesn’t hurt Kentucky’s chances, although Alabama’s Nate Oats is on the staff, too. Based on this interview, Johnson will continue to put on the full-court press with Crowe Jr. and Kentucky’s other top prospects at camp. Nine of the thirteen 2026 prospects who were invited have offers from UK, including Tyran Stokes, the No. 1 overall player in 2026 who officially visited Kentucky last week; Bluegrass native Tay Kinney, who visits next week; Brandon McCoy; and Deron Rippey Jr.

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Jasper Johnson on what he could bring to Team USA

When it was his turn to take the mic, Crowe Jr. threw Johnson some softballs, asking him what he’s looking forward to most in his freshman season at Kentucky.

“Definitely competing at a high level, going to the SEC, the best conference in college basketball,” Johnson said. “Coach Pope and his staff are really, really big in trusting me as a freshman coming in, having a major impact on the game, so just doing whatever I can to prepare myself for that.”

Both Johnson and Crowe Jr. survived the first round of training camp cuts and are among the 18 players trying to make the 12-man USA Basketball roster that will compete at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Switzerland later this month. Jamie Shaw named Johnson one of his top standouts from the camp this morning, praising his shotmaking, which Johnson believes gives him a good shot at making the roster.

“I feel like elite shotmaking,” he said when asked what he thinks he brings to Team USA. “Everybody says know your personnel, I know my personnel is being able to shoot threes at a high level, but I know I’ve got to add some things into my game to be able to stay on the floor.”

For more on the USA Basketball U19 Training Camp, I’ll direct you to last night’s Sources Say with Jack Pilgrim and Jamie Shaw and all of Jack’s coverage from Colorado Springs.

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