UNC Basketball: North Carolina trailing Kentucky for this top-40 prospect?

The UNC basketball program has been pushing hard for this top-40 prospect, but John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats may have the advantage.

The Kentucky Wildcats have finished no worse than second-place in the final recruiting rankings for a mind-boggling 12 consecutive seasons. They finished in first-place on seven occasions, and the only team to supplant them for the top spot the other five seasons was Duke.

North Carolina, on the other hand, is just beginning to get its mojo back on the recruiting trail, finishing no higher than tenth-place for a six-year stretch from 2013 to 2018. The Tar Heels did, however, finish last year’s recruiting cycle ranked No. 13 in the nation, nabbing two 5-star prospects in the same class for the first time since 2011. Roy Williams and the Tar Heels did it again in 2019, getting commitments from the nation’s top point guard, Cole Anthony, and top-20 big man Armando Bacot.

Still, though, Kentucky has had the recruiting edge over North Carolina — and just about everyone else — for quite some time. That may be the case this season, too, particularly when it comes to top-40 class of 2020 prospect Cam’Ron Fletcher, who appears to be favoring the Wildcats over the Tar Heels and a host of others.

Despite the inclusion of North Carolina in his list of five finalists last week, it’s Kentucky that national recruiting analyst Eric Bossi believes Fletcher is leaning toward. Bossi also likes hometown favorite Missouri, who’s put a ton of time and effort into the 4-star wing from St. Louis.

"“. . . So far, the high flyer has seen Tom Izzo and the Spartans officially, been to Missouri for unofficial visits and he also saw Kentucky in June,” Bossi writes. “On Aug. 1, Fletcher will head back to Kentucky for his next official visit.The return visit to Kentucky so soon is interesting because there has been some speculation that perhaps John Calipari and the Wildcats weren’t really all that interested in Fletcher. I find that hard to believe. If there wasn’t interest, why get him back on campus so soon? Also, my understanding is that the Wildcats are in constant contact with Fletcher, his family and his coaches and that they see huge potential for him.I’d look for Fletcher to set some more official visits soon, but the Kentucky visit is certainly one to monitor as I feel UK and home state Missouri may currently hold a slight edge on the rest of the field.”"

According to a report from Stock Risers last week, Fletcher will be making an official visit to each of his five finalists. That’s a good sign for North Carolina and the other teams on his list not named Kentucky, though the news of his continued contact with Calipari and the Wildcats is a bit troubling. Even more troubling for Alabama, Michigan State, Missouri and North Carolina is that national recruiting analysts Evan Daniels and Jerry Meyer have both predicted a Wildcats commitment for Fletcher, whose Crystal Ball is now trending toward Kentucky.

Fletcher is an athletic, versatile wing that plays his best basketball from inside 20 feet. He’s good off the dribble, and excels at driving the lane for close buckets. He’s working on his outside shot, but it’s not where it needs to be to consider him a real threat from long-range. He’s a good rebounder and shot blocker for his position, and his length and quickness should help him to be a very good defender at the college level.

Fletcher is the No. 36 overall prospect in the class of 2020 according to the 247Sports Composite. He’s the No. 8 player at his position, and second in the state of Missouri.

Stick with Keeping It Heel for all the latest on the Cam’Ron Fletcher recruitment, and everything UNC basketball.