A big time Kentucky target has scheduled an official visit to Lexington

One of Kentucky's most prioritized prospects has scheduled an official visit to Lexington. As the buzz with Kentucky and top 5 guard Jason Crowe Jr. dwindle and the Wildcats being currently behind Louisville in the race for top 15 guard Tay Kinney, the Wildcats are looking to continue to ramp up the pressure with one of their most prioritized guards in the 2026 class.

According to KSR's Zack Geoghegan, 2026 top 20 guard Deron Rippey Jr. will take an official visit to Kentucky beginning on August 1 and going until August 3. Rippey Jr. has been a major riser in the recruiting rankings recently, and that has led Kentucky to turn up the heat. The five-star guard was one entering the spring that was one to keep an eye on with the new staff, and now the two sides are continuing to move forward together. Along with a visit to Kentucky. Rippey Jr. has official visits scheduled to North Carolina (Aug. 31), Alabama (Sept. 13) and Texas (Sept. 19). One to Indiana is also expected in the near future.

As for where his recruitment stands with Kentucky, he has known the new staff for a while now, but the interest has really boomed recently. The staff not only got eyes on him this spring and at the NBPA Top 100 camp in June, but he was also coached by Mark Pope just recently in Colorado Springs at the USA U19 training camp, where Pope was an on-court coach in the practices and tryouts. In an interview with Geoghegan, Rippey Jr. noted Pope's energetic style and his system, which he's a big fan of, saying, "I think I’m a high-level point guard that can think the game fast, so being able to play for a coach like that will be important for me."

Rippey Jr.'s interests have only skyrocketed this summer, and with being one of Kentucky's top guard targets, it will be interesting to see how things play out on the visit next month with the interest between the two growing stronger and stronger.