Kentucky is one of the teams interested in Liam McNeeley after he decommitted from Indiana
The Kentucky Wildcats and coach John Calipari are always in recruiting mode. They have the number two class in 2024, but a recent decommitment has them looking to add to it.
Top 15 player Liam McNeeley committed to Indiana in October of 2023, and signed his letter of intent the following month. In early March, however, the forward announced he wouldn’t be playing for the Hoosiers.
McNeeley is a terrific shooter from three point range, and moves well without the ball. He is also a very good passer.
Kentucky didn’t originally offer McNeeley, but according to 247sports, they have contacted him recently. Kansas, Connecticut, Tennessee and others all have interest along with the Wildcats. Kansas is considered the favorite at the moment.
If he were to choose Kentucky, McNeeley would likely push the Wildcats into the number one spot in the team rankings. He doesn’t appear to be in a rush to make a choice, so Kentucky and the others will wait for now.
Montverde boys basketball, led by Cooper Flagg and Derik Queen, have won its first 15 games of the seasons over tough opponents.
Montverde Academy (Fla.) entered this season with sky-high expectations stemming from its seven rostered players ranked as three-star or better, four of whom have five-star ratings.
Fifteen games into the season, the Eagles are more than meeting them.
On Friday, Montverde’s 93-51 win over Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) was a blowout over what is arguably another top 5-to-10 team in the nation. The Eagles scored the first 12 points of the game before taking a 24-4 lead into the second quarter. They never trailed and raised their record to 15-0 halfway through the season.
The schedule has been as demanding as any other team in the country.
Several teams Montverde beat are under consideration for the USA TODAY Sports Super 25: Huntsville (Ala.), which is 21-1, suffered its sole loss to the Eagles. Wasatch Academy fell by 35 points. Montverde beat IMG Academy and Columbus, whose rosters contain four- and five-star players such as Darius Acuff Jr., Donnie Freeman, Khani Rooths, and Cameron and Cayden Boozer, and then Link Academy, who has about a half-dozen ranked prospects of its own. AZ Compass Prep managed to keep the score within a dozen before Archbishop Stepinac fell by 40.
(USA TODAY Network)
In the City of Palms Classic, Montverde played against what are likely the second- and third-best teams in the nation in Paul VI and Long Island Lutheran. In the semifinals, Montverde took down Paul VI 69-62 before outplaying LoLu and winning by 14 in the championship.
MaxPreps has 13 games worth of stats for Montverde in its system. According to the outlet, five-star senior Derik Queen leads the team in scoring with 16.8 points per game to go along with 7.2 rebounds in those games. Five-star senior Cooper Flagg is averaging 15.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.1 blocks per game.
Asa Newell, a five-star forward, is averaging 12 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game, while fellow five-star player Liam McNeeley is posting 13.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game.
With the Eagles led by that group of highly touted prospects, they have run through their schedule with minimal challenge. Through 15 games, it’s unclear if any team can present a serious threat to this group.
2024 small forward Liam McNeeley recently released his top-six schools. Among those listed was the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Small forward Liam McNeeley of the 2024 class released his top schools’ list on Saturday. Alabama made the cut as a finalist to land his commitment.
McNeeley is a native of Richardson, Texas but plays for Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida. The school is known for generating some of the nation’s top talent.
As a junior, McNeeley averaged 12.4 points per game, 4.0 rebounds per game, and 2.2 assists per game. He also shot an efficient 50% from the floor.
Thus far, McNeeley has not taken a visit to Alabama. That could change, however. In a previous interview with On3, McNeeley had this to say:
“They got all new coaches. Coach (Christian) Pino just hit me up a few days ago, and we’re starting to grow that relationship. I saw them watching me this April.”
There aren’t current plans for McNeeley to visit Alabama, but that could change as the relationship between McNeeley and the coaching staff develops.
Roll Tide Wire breaks down Liam McNeeley’s recruiting profile.
The Tigers are throwing their hat in the ring for Liam McNeely, one of the top players in the country in the 2024 cycle.
[autotag]Liam McNeeley[/autotag] is a 6-foot-7, 190-pound small forward from Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida. Montverde is one of the best high school basketball teams in the country, finishing last season 23-4, and it produces top college prospects every year.
McNeeley is transferring to Montverde Academy from John Paul II High School in Plano, Texas. The Cardinals finished last season 31-7 and won the TAPPS 6A State Championship with a 66-56 win over Concordia Lutheran.
Film Analysis: McNeeley is a young guy with a very smooth shot from the perimeter. He does a great job of using his length to grab rebounds and create more space on the floor on the offensive side.
