CatsIllustrated.com's Newsstand starts the week with plenty of football recruiting coverage.
Camp standouts, scouting reports, recruiting buzz, first impressions: You'll find it hard to digest everything that's been posted.
SCOUTING THE CAMP:
Dave Lackford of FlaVarsity.com and KentuckyPreps.com was at Kroger Field on Sunday night and he offered up some late night scouting notes on a range of players who were participating in Kentucky's second camp of the summer.
He talks about Terez Traynor's new offer and the player's reaction, where UK stands with Shawnkel Knight-Goff, and camp standouts like M.J. Griffin, Miguel Edwards, Cornelius McCoy and others.
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
"One of the coaches who accompanied Kentucky wide receiver commitment Marvin Alexander and his group from Florida told CatsIllustrated.com that the Wildcat pledge once worked with Kevin Beard as a trainer. Beard is now the wide receivers coach at Tennessee. Alexander worked out at Tennessee, along with the rest of Team Tate, before going to Kentucky.
The coach told CatsIllustrated.com that Alexander, who is new to Chaminade Madonna, had limited production at his last school because they didn't have a prolific passing offense. But now that he's transferred, the expectation is that he's going to have much better numbers in 2017 as a senior.
That coach also shared his thoughts on 2017 signees Joshua Ali and Chris Whittaker."
LINK: Sights and sounds from Kentucky's Sunday Night Showcase
FOX CHATTER
"Some say that the most important part of basketball attire is shoes. It says a lot about a player; it is their first impression to everyone else.
Many players including Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James have changed the shoe landscape of basketball with their personalized style of sneakers."
LINK: De'Aaron Fox says his favorite shoes are Kobe's
"If we’re discussing the elite skills displayed in college by the 2017 NBA Draft, De’Aaron Fox’s ability to get to the basket is certainly among them. Fox decimated college basketball with his top-end speed, near transcendent quickness, dynamite first step and advanced handle for his age. NBA athletes shine through at the college level, and Fox jumped off the screen every time you watched the Wildcats this year.
From a statistical standpoint, Fox got to the rim at a sub-elite rate (if Jawun Evans is the bar for elite) for a lead guard in terms of unassisted offense."
LINK: The De'Aaron Fox driving and finishing conundrum
"De'Aaron Fox will visit with the Lakers on Tuesday as the draft rapidly approaches on June 22nd. Fox is expected to go in the top-five and the Lakers have been high on Lonzo Ball."
MORE BASKETBALL LINKS
"The Sacramento Kings have a busy calendar leading up to Thursday, June 22. Time will be spent scouting, holding workouts, and contemplating making a blockbuster trade. The Kings currently hold three picks including two top ten overall selections. Sacramento has a plethora of options on how to rebuild their roster and the draft figures to be a big part of it."
LINK: Bam Adebayo is a 'Royal Prospect'
"Bam Adebayo entered his collegiate career as one of the highest rated big men in his class. But heading into the 2017 NBA draft, he is at risk of falling out of the first round. His physical profile looks like he was developed in an NBA lab of sorts, one might want a bit more length but he is incredibly mobile for a guy that will likely eventually play at more than 250 pounds. If he were even an average decision maker he would probably be a top ten overall pick. So he is going to have to convince a team that he is going to be able to develop a higher IQ game if he wants them to invest a first round pick on him."
LINK: Peachtree Hoops breaks down Adebayo's game
"Following a recent workout with his hometown New York Knicks, as well as workouts with Philadelphia, Chicago, Detroit and Portland, Kentucky guard Isaiah Briscoe has the Utah Jazz on Sunday and the L.A. Lakers on Monday, a source told FanRagSports.com.
Briscoe, not currently projected to be drafted per DraftExpress.com, averaged 12.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists last season at Kentucky.
Kentucky coach John Calipari has been in regular touch with the NBA teams working Briscoe out."
RECRUITING BUZZ
Where does UK stand with Louisville (Ky.) Doss receiver Terez Traynor after offering the rising senior?
Does Kentucky have a realistic shot at flipping Louisville defensive back Akeem Hayes?
One of the nation's top ten all-purpose backs was in Lexington: What's the latest?
That and much more.
LINK: Recruiting buzz coming out of UK's Sunday Night Showcase
VISITOR LIST
Dozens of players from Team Tate, an impressive crew from Deerfield Beach. Several in-state teams, some younger Ohio talent, Georgians and more.
It was an impressive, long list of talent in Lexington.
FIRST THOUGHTS
"First thoughts on Hawkins: He's a manchild. He worked out extensively, for the duration of the camp, and while it was tough to watch too much of him (the defensive linemen separated from the stadium and went to a field nearby) we did see him in some drills. He's huge has pretty good athleticism for his size. In short, eye test alone, Hawkins is one of the most physically impressive UK commits in recent memory.
Alexander didn't work out but he looked the part as well. He looks to be every bit of the advertised 6-foot-2 and has a good frame.
McCall didn't work out either, but he was sporting Kentucky gear hanging out and watching the offensive linemen work with John Schlarman. He, like Hawkins, is massive. He's got perhaps a little more weight that needs to be changed to better weight than Hawkins, who seems to have an NFL body already, but his size is impressive. ..." (read more)
COMMITMENT
"After losing wide receiver commit Shocky Jacques-Louis earlier in the day, UK bounced back by adding defensive line commit Tyler Bentley on Sunday night.
"After a long talk with my parents and coaches I have decided to commit to THE University of Kentucky," Bentley tweeted."
LINK: Kentucky landed a commitment from Lakota West defensive lineman Tyler Bentley
THE WAR ROOM! (6/11)
"This time of year it becomes customary for hopes to soar. Top targets are visiting campus and many fans, understandably anxious and/or excited, expect commitments to quickly follow. Sometimes they do follow quickly; sometimes they don't. Sometimes, as seems to be the case now, a school appears to be set up very nicely with some top targets following a visit.
In the case of Keaton Upshaw, everything we're still hearing leads us to believe that Kentucky is the frontrunner. He was surrounded by coaches and commitments all day on Saturday, so what's the hold up?
We've heard that he might be visiting Auburn, a school that wants him to get on campus. He has at least entertained the idea of getting down to the Plains, but it's too early to tell how much interest he has in the Tigers, or how much interest the Tigers have in him. It seems like Auburn has hinted they may well offer if he does visit."
QB TALKS CAMP
"Ross Malmgren threw for more than 2,500 yards as a high school sophomore in Georgia last year, so he's not exactly a sleeper.
With Jarren Williams on board from the Class of 2018, Kentucky and Hinshaw can shift the focus to 2019 quarterbacks, so Malmgren was under heightened scrutiny last night.
"I loved the camp," Helmgren told CatsIllustrated.com early Sunday. "Coach (Darin) Hinshaw had already been down to my school to watch me throw about two months ago so I already knew him pretty well. I really like him a lot. He's a really nice guy and we seem to get along really well. ..." (read more)
FUTURE BRIGHT
"The press conference following the UK baseball team’s season-ending loss to Louisville on Saturday afternoon started a few minutes later than scheduled.
When Coach Nick Mingione and juniors Evan White and Riley Mahan finally sat down at the table to take questions — all of their eyes still watering from a tearful locker room — the first thing the first-year coach did was acknowledge the delay."
LINK: Future 'very bright' for UK baseball program under Mingione
