NFLNBANHLMLBWNBARoland-GarrosSoccer
Featured Video
Mitchell Headed to 1st Conference Finals 🔥
Gregory Payan/Associated Press

Kentucky Basketball Recruiting: 2016 Recruits Who Would Be Perfect Fits

Joe TanseyJun 2, 2015

With almost every big name in the class of 2015 committed to a school, the recruiting focus for the top programs in the country is now squarely set on the class of 2016.

Just like every season, the Kentucky Wildcats are in the mix for some of the top rising seniors in the high school basketball ranks.

With that in mind, we decided to take a look at which potential targets in the class of 2016 would be perfect fits in head coach John Calipari's system.

Continue reading on to see which five prospects we chose as the best options for Calipari at this point in the recruiting game.

Harry Giles

1 of 5

Power forward Harry Giles, who is garnering interest from most of the top programs in the nation, is one of the most coveted athletes in the class of 2016.

In a USA Today blog post on May 15, Giles had this to say about his visit with Calipari:

"

Coach Calipari talked about where he’d play me and how he’d develop me. He talked about all the players that he had enter the draft this year. It was definitely impressive. We talked about a lot of different stuff. Coach Cal is real cool; loved that visit!

"

Giles mentioned that he had in-home visits with Duke and Kentucky, while Wake Forest and North Carolina met him at his school. Convincing the North Carolina native to leave his home state may be a difficult task, but Calipari is capable of completing it.

As for how Giles would fit into the Wildcats system, he would fill in a growing void in the frontcourt, which was depleted by the 2015 NBA draft.

Since Giles is one of the top players in the class of 2016, it would not be surprising if he features in a major role right away if he commits to Kentucky.

Udoka Azubuike

2 of 5

Udoka Azubuike is the top center in the class of 2016, and the interest in the massive big man is growing as we inch toward summer.

Kentucky will be fine down low during the 2015-16 collegiate season with Marcus Lee and Alex Poythress manning the paint, but Calipari needs to infuse some new blood into the depth chart for the future.

Azubuike, who is not related to former Kentucky player Kelenna Azubuike, is also attracting interest from Duke, Kansas and in-state school Florida State.

The 6'10" center currently weighs in at 280 pounds, and he should only get better down low during his senior season at The Potter's House Christian Academy in Jacksonville.

If that is the case, the Wildcats would love to have another dominant center enter the program. While he may not turn out to be Karl-Anthony Towns in his freshman season, he would be a solid contributor early in his career if he opts to bring his talents to Lexington.

Jamal Murray

3 of 5

Jamal Murray is one of the top guards in the class of 2016 for now. But there is a possibility that the latest star from the Canadian talent pipeline follows a recent trend and reclassifies to the class of 2015.

According to David Ebner of the Globe and Mail, Murray is working hard to finish up the required schoolwork in order to be eligible for the upcoming college basketball season. 

The 18-year-old guard would be a terrific addition to the current Kentucky backcourt, but he would also find a way to thrive during the 2016-17 season if he does not reclassify.

Whenever he enters the collegiate scene, Murray is expected to last a single season before declaring for the draft. With his stock continuing to rise, the Canadian guard's potential suitors are growing. If Murray remains in the class of 2016, Calipari will have a fight on his hands to obtain the services of the star guard.

TOP NEWS

NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship
NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship
North Carolina v Duke

Josh Langford

4 of 5

Josh Langford's name has started to surface in the discussion of potential replenishments at the guard position, with Tyler Ulis and Isaiah Briscoe not guaranteed to stay in Lexington for long.

The 5-star combo guard received an offer from Kentucky back in April, per Daniel Boyette of AL.com. The Wildcats joined fellow SEC schools Auburn, Alabama, Mississippi State, LSU and Tennessee on the list of potential suitors for the player from Madison Academy in Madison, Alabama.

Kentucky is not only facing competition from programs in its conference, but it will also be squaring off against the likes of Michigan State, Kansas and UConn for Langford's services.

Adding a player like Langford to his 2016-17 roster would be a big boost for Calipari, who may suffer from the lack of well-rounded backcourt players next season.

Malik Monk

5 of 5

Rarely do the Wildcats face stiff competition from Arkansas in the race for a top recruit's signature, but that is exactly what they are up against in the chase for Malik Monk.

The No. 5 player in the class of 2016 has plenty of ties to the Razorbacks, but the Wildcats could lure him away if the right situation presents itself in Lexington.

That ideal scenario could work out for Calipari and the Wildcats if Ulis and Briscoe don't stay around after the 2015-16 season.

Kentucky will be in need of a dynamic scorer regardless of what the current underclassmen opt to do, which means we could see the Wildcats go all-in for Monk.

If Kentucky adds Monk and Giles to its class of 2016, it would deal a major blow to the rest of the SEC and the ACC schools in North Carolina, as it would display just how dominant Calipari is as a recruiter.

All recruit information courtesy of 247Sports unless otherwise noted.

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Mitchell Headed to 1st Conference Finals 🔥

TOP NEWS

NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship
NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship
North Carolina v Duke
NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament – Sweet Sixteen - Practice Day – San Jose
B/R

TRENDING ON B/R