“Succeed and proceed;” that’s the mantra in Lexington. Wenyen Gabriel is up next at Kentucky, as he’s projected to be the next starting power forward for UK.
Kentucky is a de facto NBDL franchise and I mean that as a compliment; I always have. Being the first and foremost NBA Developmental Program is the defining characteristic of Coach John Calipari’s recruiting pitch. We’ve been saying it for years- Coach Cal is a social trail blazer in that regard.
He’s developed a system that both a.) works for everyone involved and b.) flies in the face of the NCAA’s hypocritical, broken system. It makes Calipari and the Kentucky a lightning rod for criticism, but you know who else is extremely polarizing?
Everyone who’s ever challenged the establishment and first brought change to the status quo.
Kentucky’s NBA assembly line is showcased every single year in the McDonald’s All-American Game. The Kentucky signees in the MCDAAG this year will be in the NBA Draft Lottery next year.
So if UK is a quasi-NBA D-League, then the MCDAAG is their D-League. Before this gets to be 1.) way too meta and 2.) an alphabet soup of acronyms, let’s move on to profiling each blue chip prospect in Big Blue’s latest freshmen class. Today, we profile Wenyen Gabriel.
He wasn’t selected to MCDAAG like Malik Monk, De’Aaron Fox, Sacha Killeya-Jones and Bam Adebayo were, but Gabriel has been added to the Jordan Brand Classic and will play in the annual high-school all-star game in Brooklyn, N.Y., on April 15. Adebayo, Fox and Monk were among the original 16 players selected for Jordan Brand.
Gabriel is a 6-9, 210-pound forward who averaged 22.0 points, 14.0 rebounds, 7.0 blocks and 6.3 assists at Wilbraham & Monson Academy in Wilbraham, Mass., this past season. Ranked as high as No. 9 in the national rankings, Gabriel is an inside-out forward with a high motor, length to cause problems inside, and an ability to stretch opposing defenses with a great shooting touch for a big man.
247 Sports ranks Gabriel as the ninth-best player overall in the 2016 class. Scout tabs him at No. 10, ESPN places him at No. 15 and Rivals ranks him No. 17. Gabriel is a consensus five-star recruit and was named to the Naismith All-American Team earlier this month.
With the entire UK roster declaring for the draft so there is still a lot to figure out about what their roster will really look like next year (our guess is below.) Regardless of who stays or leaves, the Wildcats bring in another stellar recruiting class that should have them thinking National Title next year:
Projected Depth Chart
C: Bam Adebayo (Fr)/Isaac Humphries (So)/Tai Wynyard (Fr)
PF: Wenyen Gabriel (Fr)/Derek Willis (Sr)/Sacha Killeya-Jones (Fr)
SG: Malik Monk (Fr)/Charles Matthews (So)
G: Isaiah Briscoe (So)/ Mychal Mulder (Sr)/Dominique Hawkins (Sr)
PG: De’Aaron Fox (Fr)
Gone: PG-Tyler Ulis, C-Skal Labissiere, SG-Jamal Murray, F-Alex Poythress, PF-Marcus Lee
As of now, we rank the Wildcats 3rd in the early 2016-17 Preseason Poll, to see the rest of the top 25 go here. Expect Wenyen Gabriel to be the next starting four for Coach Cal, and thus “succeed and proceed.”
Since John Calipari’s arrival, 30 total players have been selected to the Jordan Brand Classic, including: Adebayo, Devin Booker, Isaiah Briscoe, DeMarcus Cousins, Anthony Davis, Fox, Gabriel, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Archie Goodwin, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Dakari Johnson, Terrence Jones, Brandon Knight, Skal Labissiere, Doron Lamb, Marcus Lee, Trey Lyles, Charles Matthews, Monk, Nerlens Noel, Daniel Orton, Alex Poythress, Julius Randle, Marquis Teague, Karl-Anthony Towns, Tyler Ulis, John Wall, Kyle Wiltjer and James Young.
KENTUCKY RECRUITING CLASS PROFILES
De’Aaron Fox
Malik Monk
How John Calipari is Blazing a Trail Via His Recruiting Methods
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes regularly to the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye publication and Bold Global.
He also consistently appears on numerous talk shows all across the country. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram