Most weeks Kahlil Whitney talks to Kentucky coach John Calipari or his staff two or three times. The message is always the same to the future Wildcat. “Basically he can’t wait to get me on campus,” said the 6-7 New Jersey forward. “He is ready to coach me and get the best out of me, and I’m ready for that, too.”
Of course, he’s also eager to play in the McDonald’s All-American Game here on Wednesday night. Kentucky signee Tyrese Maxey is on the West team with Whitney.
“I cannot wait to let Kentucky fans get a chance to see me play. I hope they see everything. I am going to bring my full package out,” Whitney said about the game. “Just getting to play here is a dream come true. Coming from a high school team to having all five-star guys on my team is special. It’s a great feeling to be one of these guys out here and it means a lot of me to go out and play well.”
He’s known Maxey for about 18 months now since they played together in a national camp before Kentucky had even offered him a scholarship.
“Once I did get recruited by Kentucky, he (Maxey) reached out immediately,” Whitney said. “I really like being out there with him. I think we can use our games together very well and really get the offense going together. Me and him talk a lot.”
That friendship came in useful in the Powerade Jam Fest dunk contest Monday night. Whitney put on a Powerade cape and had Maxey throw the ball off the backboard for him to set up his first dunk of the contest.
“It was just something for fun and there was nobody better to help me than him,” Whitney said. “Just gives us something else to talk about.”
Whitney also talks with Kentucky freshmen Ashton Hagans, Tyler Herro and Keldon Johnson.
“They tell me how workouts go, what to expect when I get there and just how to fit in and make my place when I get to Kentucky,” Whitney said.
He says those who have compared him to Johnson are accurate — with one exception.
“Me and Keldon both have that dog mentality We both like to get out in transition a lot,” Whitney said. “I feel like I can shoot the ball a little bit better than him, but other than that we are the same type player.”
He also knows Kentucky sophomore center Nick Richards, another player from New Jersey. They played against each other four times during Whitney’s sophomore season — and Richards team won all four games.
Richards describes Whitney as “pretty athletic, pretty aggressive dude.” The UK sophomore says New Jersey has a lot of good athletes, including three playing in this year’s McDonald’s Game.
“Me and Nick have a pretty good relationship and hopefully he is there when I get there and we can get a national championship,” Whitney said.
The future Cat is trying to enhance the chances of that happening by persuading two unsigned McDonald’s All-Americans —6-9 Matthew Hurt of Minnesota and 6-11 Jaden McDaniels of Washington — to pick Kentucky. Both have the Cats on their final list of schools.
“Those are two guys we would like to have and could help us win a national championship,” Whitney said. “Matthew is pretty quiet, pretty laid back. But he is a hell of a player. He can shoot the 3 really well, create space, rebound. We would love to have him at Kentucky. Same with Jaden.”