UNC Recruiting: Tar Heels miss on elite recruit, Kevin Knox explains why

After announcing Kentucky as his college decision on Saturday night, Kevin Knox took to his personal blog to explain why

On Saturday night, the University of North Carolina men’s basketball program saw another elite recruit slip through its fingers and into the hands of another blue blood program.

This time, the recipient of the five-star prospect was Kentucky. And it’s not the first time that the Wildcats have snagged a commitment from a player that the Tar Heels so heavily targeted.

In fact, it’s not even the first time this year.

John Calipari and the Wildcats got commitments from five-star power forwards Jarred Vanderbilt and P.J. Washington, both elite recruits from the class of 2017 that the Tar Heels went all-in on.

And in other recruiting battles in recent years, it was Duke or Kansas who snagged pledges from top-25 players despite the tireless efforts on the part of the Tar Heels’ coaching staff.

Mar 26, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; McDonalds High School All-American forward Kevin Knox II (23) poses for a photo during the 2017 McDonalds All American Game Portrait Day at Chicago Marriott. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

Most recently, it was class of 2017 five-star prospect Kevin Knox, who announced via Twitter on Saturday night that he would be attending the University of Kentucky.

Later in the evening, Knox took to his personal blog to talk more about the decision and his reasoning for choosing the Wildcats over offers from Duke, Florida State, Missouri and North Carolina.

"“There were a lot of reasons why I chose Kentucky,” Knox said. “First the coaching staff is phenomenal! They know how to get players to the league and get them outside of their comfort zone and push players to the limit. Then I’ll be playing with a lot of great players every day in practice getting better against the best competition and, lastly, they know how to win.”"

Fair enough. You go do you, Kevin. This particular writer congratulates you on your decision and wishes you luck in your future endeavors.

But that’s over now. And each of the teams who recruited Knox so fervently must move on.

Sure, it’s a hit to Florida state. And while Missouri could have used Knox, the Tigers have done pretty well on the recruiting trail for a team that went 8-24 last season.

And let’s face it. Mike Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils aren’t going to lose any sleep over this; particularly with a good shot at landing five-star prospects Mohamed Bamba and Trevon Duvall.

But what about North Carolina? Whatever will the Tar Heels do?

I’m not sure, but after back-to-back title game appearances and a national championship victory, their third in the last 13 seasons, I’m sure they’ll figure it out.

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