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KSR Today: Jamal Murray gets a ring; Roster Watch continues

Tyler-Thompsonby: Tyler Thompson06/13/23MrsTylerKSR

Good morning, friends. It’s an especially happy one for former Kentucky Wildcat Jamal Murray, who is waking up a World Champion. Murray and the Denver Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat last night 94-89 to win the series 4-1, and, therefore the NBA title. It’s the first-ever title for the Nuggets and the 17th for a former Kentucky player, the second in the John Calipari era. Murray joins Anthony Davis, who won the 2020 Larry O’Brien trophy in the bubble with the Los Angeles Lakers, as Calipari-coached Cats with rings.

Murray finished with 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists last night, bringing his postseason splits to 26.1 points per game, 7.1 assists per game, and 5.1 rebounds per game. He missed all of last season with a torn ACL and was understandably overcome with emotion while addressing the Denver crowd after the win.

“It’s just an amazing feeling. Blood, sweat, and tears to get back to this point,” he said. “Everybody on my team in here, everybody on the floor believed in me, believed in me to get back to myself. We proved a lot of doubters wrong.

“I learned a lot about myself, just being out for two postseasons. Just grinding, having so many things go through my head. Watching my team go through the ups and downs, and just to see us healthy, knowing what we can do, knowing we had the belief from the get-go. You guys (the fans) had the belief from the get-go. It’s just great to see it through.”

Once the speeches were done, it was time to party. After the champagne spray, Murray’s partner-in-crime, Finals MVP Nikola Jokic, threw him in the pool.

John Calipari, who attended Game 4 with Murray’s former teammate Tyler Ulis, took to social media to congratulate him.

“So happy for Jamal AND HIS FAMILY,” Cal tweeted. “Roger and Sylvia sacrificed for this moment. Still remember when Jamal committed in my office and I listened to their story. It was emotional. He’s more than a GREAT player. He’s a great teammate, he’s a great player who remembers his past.

“Tyler Ulis and I sat together in Miami for Game 4 and Jamal called us down to the floor before the game to hug us. Come on!! Congratulations, Jamal!! We are all celebrating WITH you!!”

Basketball is where we’ll start today’s rundown, so let’s keep the ball rolling…

Basketball Roster Watch: Joey Hart, Somto Cyril coming, Reeves returning?

The week got off to a big start with the commitment of Jordan Burks, a three-star small forward who has already signed with Kentucky and moved into the Wildcat Coal Lodge. Kentucky now has eight scholarship players on the roster, nine if you count super-senior and former walk-on Brennan Canada.

Burks didn’t waste time, joining the Cats at this week’s basketball camps:

We’re still waiting on decisions from three-star shooting guard Joey Hart, who visited over the weekend, and four-star center Somto Cyril, who was in town late last week. Yesterday afternoon, Cyril shared photos from his official visit. I never thought I’d be happy to see the checkerboard jerseys again, but the thought of adding some depth to the frontcourt did it.

We’re also still waiting to hear what Antonio Reeves will do. The senior wing withdrew from the NBA Draft but is now evaluating all of his college options. Last week, word spread that he is taking summer classes at his former school, Illinois State, which could mean he’s working on finishing his degree in order to be a graduate transfer. Thankfully, the tide seems to be turning toward a return.

Yesterday, Jack Pilgrim took a break from his vacation to share some good rumblings re: Reeves on KSBoard. Nothing is finalized, Jack said, but things are looking better than they did last week, a promising sign as Kentucky tries to convince the sharpshooter to return to Lexington. A decision and announcement could come as soon as today. Make sure you’re signed up for KSR’s text alerts to get the news as it happens.

Wah-nee-nah-nah! Sign up for Breaking News Alerts by texting KSR to 41372.

John Calipari changing stance on NIL?

It’s not a coincidence that the good news on Reeves came at the same time Matt Jones heard John Calipari is reconsidering his stance on NIL, a major factor in Reeves’ decision. Last week, Jones outlined why Calipari’s strict position on NIL — especially when it comes to collectives — is hurting the program. Now, Jones is hearing Cal may change his position, very good news as the work continues to build the roster for this year and beyond.

“Hearing Calipari has modified his NIL stance slightly,” Jones tweeted last night. “Some money has been raised from some outside sources and will be used for a Collective-like entity that may not be called a Collective. A very good development in my mind.

“I will give some more details tomorrow on the show but I am told events of this summer have changed Calipari’s mind slightly and this ‘non-collective Collective’ may pay dividends in the next 48 hours. If the info about Calipari changing his position is correct, I think he deserves a lot of credit It is hard to shake fundamental positions a person has but this was needed and (assuming true) is VERY good news.”

Kentucky Football target announces decision

This afternoon, three-star athlete Trelain Maddox will choose between Kentucky, Georgia Tech, and Rutgers. The 6’2″ 190 lbs. two-way star from the Atlanta metro area recently visited Kentucky but it’s the Yellow Jackets that are favored for his services. Georgia Tech has a 99.3% chance of landing Maddox per On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine, with KSR+’s Jacob Polacheck logging a pick for the Yellow Jackets on Monday. We’ll find out for certain at 4 p.m.

Even if the Cats miss on Maddox, they are trending as the favorite for four-star EDGE Brian Robinson. Last night, Michigan insider EJ Holland logged a pick for Kentucky, giving the Cats a 56.4% lead in Robinson’s On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine forecast.

Who’s camping at Kentucky today?

Camp season rolls on a Kroger Field this morning as the program hosts another one-day camp for 9th-12th graders and college transfers. Yesterday, future Kentucky quarterback Cutter Boley was back at Kroger Field not even 24 hours after his official visit to throw with campers and work alongside offensive coordinator Liam Coen. Having the face of the 2024 recruiting class be so involved with these camps is a great sign, as are Boley’s hints about who may join him in Lexington. When asked about three-star EDGE Antwan Smith, who committed on Sunday, Boley teased a few more Yahtzees on the way.

“Great kid. Big-time get for us,” Boley told KSR on Monday of Antwan Smith. “Here in the next few weeks, there should be more. I know (Smith) was the only one to do it right after, but there are some other kids that are gonna finish out their other OVs, but I know of some other kids that are locked in.”

One of the players Boley is likely referencing is Covington Catholic three-star tight end Willie Rodriguez, who was also in Lexington over the weekend for an official visit and has been trending toward the Wildcats since receiving an offer in April. Zack Geoghegan and Nick Roush both logged picks for Kentucky, bringing his On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine forecast to 91.1% Wildcats.

Take advantage of the KSR+ Summer Special

Between basketball roster news, football official visits, and all the recruiting news in between, there’s never been a better time to try KSR+. One U.S. dollar gets you three months of access to daily interviews with recruits from Jacob Polacheck, football deep dives from Adam Luckett, and oodles of scoop and scuttlebutt on KSBoard, along with daily chatter with the KSR crew.

If you’d like to try it a little longer, we’re also offering 50% off our annual subscription. Our Summer Special won’t be around much longer (like, days), so take advantage now and join the club.

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2025-12-03