Kentucky basketball currently has filled 12 of its available 13 scholarships for the 2024-25 season, and nearly has a complete roster. However, Mark Pope is still looking to fill that final spot, and might do so with Jeremiah Fears, who was originally a member of the 2025 class.
Fears is ranked as the 38th player in the 2025 class by 247sports, and the number seven combo guard. He committed to Illinois back in January over teams like Kansas, Tennessee, and Arizona, among others.
Related: Current 2025 Kentucky basketball targets
On Monday, Fears announced that he was decommitting from the Illini, and reopening his recruitment. He also declared that he was reclassifying to the 2024 class, which is big for Kentucky.
The Wildcats had tried to recruit Will Riley as a reclassify to 2024 previously, but he wound up committing to Illinois. Now, they’ll try to add Fears, who was previously an Illinois recruit. They contacted him quickly after decommitting.
If Fears were to choose Kentucky, he would likely be the backup point guard to start the season. The Wildcats need more depth at that spot, and the 6’3″, 175 lb Fears would be an incredible talent to add. Big Blue Nation will be watching closely.