Sources: Koby Brea to join Kentucky Wildcats on 3-year, $50M deal….
Dayton transfer Koby Brea, considered the best shooter in men’s college basketball and coming off a historic season, has committed to Kentucky, he told ESPN on Wednesday.
“Growing up, I was told I was dreaming too big whenever I’d say my dream was to play for the University of Kentucky,” Brea said. “I feel like God does everything for a reason, and He has put me in a position where I’m able to play for my dream school in my last year of college, while playing for something bigger than myself.”
Following the NBA draft withdrawal deadline on May 29, the top of the Way-Too-Early top 25 began to fully take shape. Kansas, Alabama and UConn formed the first tier of teams, with the likes of Houston, Gonzaga, Baylor and Iowa State not too far behind.
In the month since then, there hasn’t been any movement inside the top 10 — although Dan Hurley’s flirtation with the Los Angeles Lakers nearly caused mass chaos throughout the sport. But with the final handful of impact transfers making decisions, as well as a few reclassifications, there continues to be movement in the back half of the top 25.
Trevon Brazile’s decision to withdraw from the transfer portal and return to Arkansas was notable for the Razorbacks, while Coleman Hawkins and Ugonna Onyenso committing to Kansas State gave the Wildcats a compelling case to move onto this list. Illinois also continued to stockpile intriguing young talent by landing highly touted prospect Will Riley, who reclassified into the 2024 class.
But Texas and Kentucky are the biggest movers, rising from the next in line group into the top 25 following the additions of Kansas State transfer Arthur Kaluma and BYU transfer Jaxson Robinson, respectively.
After being hired to replace John Calipari as Kentucky head coach, Mark Pope has landed one of the best players remaining in the transfer portal.
Dayton transfer guard Koby Brea announced on Wednesday that he has committed to play for Pope and Kentucky:
Brea is coming off a historic shooting season for the Flyers. Per ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, he became the fourth player in college basketball history to make 100 three-pointers while connecting on 50 percent of his attempts, joining Salim Stoudamire (2005), Mike Iuzzolino (1991) and Steve Kerr (1988).
Givony noted that Brea chose the Wildcats over a long list of suitors that included Duke, North Carolina, Kansas and back-to-back reigning national champion UConn.
“Growing up, I was told I was dreaming too big whenever I’d say my dream was to play for the University of Kentucky,” Brea said. “I feel like God does everything for a reason, and He has put me in a position where I’m able to play for my dream school in my last year of college, while playing for something bigger than myself.”
Brea added that playing for Pope, whose BYU team ranked third in three-point attempts this past season, was a big reason for his decision.
“His style of play complements my strengths as a basketball player,” Brea said. “He’s proven to be one of the best when it comes to utilizing the 3-pointer. There’s nobody in college basketball who can shoot off the catch, off the bounce and off the move all together the way I do.”
Brea had declared for the NBA draft while maintaining his college eligibility and entering the transfer portal, and he ultimately decided to return for his senior season. He’s now the sixth transfer to commit to Kentucky, joining fifth-year seniors Amari Williams (Drexel), Lamont Butler (San Diego State) and Andrew Carr (Wake Forest) junior Otega Oweh (Oklahoma) and sophomore Brandon Garrison (Oklahoma State).
