The Kentucky men’s basketball team has added Brad Calipari to the 2016-17 roster. Calipari is enrolled in summer school, which starts this week, and will be eligible to play for the Wildcats in the fall.
Calipari, the son of head coach John Calipari, joins Kentucky after a productive final season at the MacDuffie School in Massachusetts. The 6-foot, 180-pound guard spent the last two seasons at MacDuffie after starting his high school career at Lexington Christian Academy.
“I’m very excited to be a part of this special group of guys coming in,” Brad Calipari said. “It’s truly an honor to finally be with the Big Blue Nation. I’m very lucky to have this opportunity and won’t put it to waste.”
Brad Calipari developed into a sharpshooter during his final second at MacDuffie, where he shot 47 percent from behind the 3-point line. The freshman-to-be averaged 15.3 points last season, 3.6 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game.
He was chosen for the 2016 Kentucky Derby Festival Basketball Classic, where he scored nine points on three 3-pointers to go along with four rebounds.
In January, Brad Calipari played against incoming UK signee Wenyen Gabriel and scored 17 points on five made 3-pointers. He led his team to a 69-61 victory over Gabriel’s squad from Wilbraham and Monson Academy (Mass.).
“I’m excited for Brad to join the team,” John Calipari said. “I’m so proud of how hard he’s worked to get to this stage and prepare for this moment. Brad chose to go to prep school on his own and it ended up being a great decision. It was also his decision to be a part of this team. He knows he’s walking into a program with really good players, that he’s going to have to earn everything he gets, and that he’s going to have to strive to be his best. I’m looking forward to coaching my son.”
Kentucky’s 2016 signing class is regarded as the top recruiting haul in the country by Rivals and ESPN. In addition to Brad Calipari, the Wildcats will welcome five-star prospects Edrice “Bam” Adebayo, De’Aaron Fox, Gabriel, Sacha Killeya-Jones and Malik Monk. In all, UK will add five freshmen this fall who ranked in the top 25 of the final 247Sports composite rankings.
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s basketball team, follow @KentuckyMBB on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, and on the web at UKathletics.com.
‑ GO CATS –
For more information contact:
Eric Lindsey (eric.lindsey@uky.edu), Deb Moore (deb.moore@uky.edu) or Jake Most (jake.most@uky.edu) – (859) 257-3838
by Eric Lindsey
Associate Director of Media Relations