Tag: Will Riley

Before guard Jaxson Robinson pulled out of the NBA draft and committed to Kentucky basketball, there was a lot of talk about Will Riley reclassifying to 2024 and becoming a Wildcat. Instead, Robinson is in Lexington, and Riley has committed to Illinois.

Riley is a 6’8″, 180 small forward from Pennsylvania. He is a five star player and ranked in the top ten overall for 247sports. He’s their number two small forward, and top ranked player in the state.

Related: Mark Pope contacts 2026 guard Jayden Johnson

There’s still a good chance Riley reclassifies to 2024, which likely played a large role in his not picking the Wildcats. With the number of veteran players Pope has added through transfers, the minutes may not be there early on. At Illinois, he has a better chance of playing this season.

Kentucky, meanwhile, is likely set for the most part for 2024-25. They have an open scholarship, but it’s likely to be filled by more of a role player. Instead, Pope and his staff are hard at work on the 2025 class.

Good luck to Will Riley in his college career and beyond.

A name that Kentucky basketball fans are familiar with in recruiting is 2025’s Will Riley. He has had the Wildcats in his final five for quite some time, and even with the coaching change, has kept them there. It appears as if he’s finally ready to make a decision on his college career.

Riley announced that he will make his decision officially on June 23rd. He will make the announcement between 2:00 and 3:30 PM ET in Waterloo, Ontario.

A top 15 recruit on 247sports composite rankings, Riley is down to five schools with Kentucky being one. Illinois is the favorite according to some experts. Arizona and the Alabama Crimson Tide are the other two college choices. He could also opt for the New Zealand Breakers of the NBL.

One potential big factor is which class Riley decides to enter. He is rumored to be considering reclassifying to 2024, which might hurt Kentucky’s chances. Big Blue Nation would love to have him in either class, and he would be the first big recruit of the Mark Pope era. Fans will find out in less than two weeks.

Class of 2025 forward Will Riley has been a target of Kentucky basketball for quite some time now, even before Mark Pope became the head coach. Once Pope took over, he continued the process, and Riley has kept the Wildcats under consideration.

Recently, Riley took some visits, including one with the Wildcats, and made an alteration to his top five. After a positive visit to Illinois, he has added them and removed the Arkansas Razorbacks, coached by former Kentucky coach John Calipari.

Related: Three Wildcats picked in new CBS mock draft

Riley is one of the top players in the 2025 class currently. He’s currently the 21st ranked player overall by 247sports, and is their number three small forward. He is considering reclassifying, however, to the 2024 class. That could change the way he looks at his choices, as he’d want to go somewhere he feels he’d fit in.

A decision could come anytime for Riley, especially if he decides to join the 2024 class. Kentucky remains a strong contender, and Big Blue Nation hopes to see him playing for them at some point.

Will Riley has been a recruit that Kentucky basketball has targeted for some time. He put the Wildcats in his final five choices back in April, and coach Mark Pope has kept up his recruitment since then.

In May, Riley announced that he would be taking a visit to Kentucky, and on Tuesday, that visit took place. The 6’8, 180 lb forward is in Lexington to meet with Mark Pope and the staff.

Riley is a top 25 player in the 2025 class on most recruiting services. He’s number 16 overall in 247sports composite rankings, and is a five-star player. Understandably, there are a lot of top programs interested in bringing him in, and he has a number of offers to choose from.

Related: Current Kentucky recruiting targets for 2025

With visits to Alabama and Illinois already behind him, and his visit to Kentucky on Tuesday, it could be a sign that Riley will make a decision soon. That decision will be quicker, especially, if he decides to reclassify to the 2024 as many think he will.

It’s too early to say whether or not Kentucky is the favorite to land Riley, but the fact that he’s still visiting means they are at least in the running. For now, that’s a positive.

When new Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope began recruiting for the 2025 class, one of the first players he targeted was Will Riley. He’s still working hard to make Riley a Wildcat.

Riley has been a five-star player for a while now, but his recent play has made him even more desirable to the teams recruiting him. In a recent game, he scored 42 points on 15-of-16 shooting from the field. It was an impressive display that showed what he is capable of.

Most services have Riley as a top 20 overall player in his class. He comes in at 16th on 247sports composite rankings, and he’s the third best small forward.

Riley had some nice things to say about Kentucky. He told Kentucky Sports Radio:

(Kentucky has) just been saying they like my game, they like how I’m developing, playing with pace, playing positionless. It’s good the way they’re recruiting me. They’re recruiting me not too much but they’re reaching out enough.

According to zagsblog writer Sam Lance, Riley will be visiting Kentucky, along with the Alabama Crimson Tide, sometime in June. A date hasn’t been set.

New Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope has been working hard to assemble a roster for 2024. However, he is also looking ahead to 2025, and has the Wildcats in the running for top twenty recruit Will Riley.

As reported by On3’s Joe Tipton, Riley has narrowed his list of choices down to five, and Kentucky is one of them. Arkansas and John Calipari is one of his other finalists along with Arizona, Alabama, and the NBL.

Riley is ranked inside the top 20 recruits for 2025, and is the third ranked small forward on 247sports. He has great length, at 6’8″, and Pope thinks he fits what they want to do on offense.

So far, he has not visited Kentucky, but he is planning to do so in the future. Pope’s 2024 team will consist mostly of transfers, but he will be looking to build a competitive recruiting class for next year. At least for now, he’s getting the attention of some top ranked players.

The Kentucky Wildcats and John Calipari are working on the 2025 recruiting class, and seeing who the next stars on campus will be. On Friday, they got some good news from one of the top players.

Will Riley is a four star forward, per 247sports, out of Pennsylvania. They have him as the 23rd ranked player in the class overall currently, and the 4th overall SF.

Will Riley, the No. 11 overall player in On3’s 2025 class, listed his final 10 earlier today ‼️

Duke | Kentucky | Michigan | UCLA| Villanova | Arizona | Alabama | G-League | NBL | London Lions

Where do things stand as he narrowed his options (INTEL) https://t.co/hkYzVeQcrp pic.twitter.com/HXANvRy7YU

— Jamie Shaw (@JamieShaw5) March 7, 2024

On Thursday, Riley listed his final ten choices of where to play basketball after high school, and Kentucky made the list. Duke, UCLA and Arizona are among the other college options, along with the G-League and the London Lions.

Riley is ranked as high as 11th overall by some services, and could finish as a top ten player. He’s averaging 27 points per game and shooting over 40% from three point range. He’ll be a solid addition to whichever team adds him, and Coach Cal would love to make him a Wildcats in 2025.