Mar 1, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope yells to his players during the second half against the Auburn Tigers at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Kentucky basketball predicted to land the number one 2026 recruiting class

Originally posted on Kentucky Wildcats on SI
By Andrew Stefaniak | Last updated Sep 23, 2025 7:30 AM ET

One of the big questions about Mark Pope now that he has proven he can win and proven he can make NCAA Tournament runs is whether or not he will be able to land some of the big fish via high school recruiting.

Pope landed two five-stars in the 2025 class, but some believe that because they are Kentucky natives, he had an advantage. Many college basketball experts want to see Pope land a top ten recruit to believe that he is elite on the recruiting trail.

This is the goal for the 2026 class, and it sounds like CBS Sports believes Coach Pope has a great chance to get this done.

An article from CBS Sports discussed which teams could finish with the #1 overall class in 2026, and Kentucky was the pick of writer Kyle Boone.

Here is what Boone had to say about why Kentucky has a shot to be number one: "Pope and his staff are analytics-minded and always keep fit and character in mind. That's something to monitor as the 2026 class unfolds. If they deem that older players available in the portal are better fits on paper or in the locker room than high school players they could get, then that'd obviously hurt its chances overall of clawing in the top class. But I think UK could still get the No. 1 class and bring in a haul from the portal to help them contend. The foundation is laid in Lexington for UK to be big hitters in both arenas."

Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Boone went on to talk about the players that Kentucky is in for, and here is what he had to say: "So far, UK appears to be very much in play for No. 1 recruit Tyran Stokes, No. 2 recruit Jordan Smith, No. 4 recruit Cameron Williams, and No. 5 recruit Caleb Holt, among other blue-chippers. And of the top-10 ranked players in the class, all but one, Dylan Mingo, have reported offers from the Wildcats. That signals UK is very much pushing for top talents."

The narrative that Coach Pope can't recruit outside of the state of Kentucky is still out there, and if he doesn't find a way to put together an elite 2026 class, this won't go away. Coach Pope has Kentucky in a really good spot with some of the best players in the 2026 class, and it is imperative that he finishes the job.

This article first appeared on Kentucky Wildcats on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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