Monday afternoon, on a live podcast with Jeff Goodman and The Field of 68 Media Network, Georgia transfer Sahvir Wheeler orally committed to Kentucky.
The 5-foot-10, 180-pound point guard chose the Wildcats over Kansas, LSU and Oklahoma State.
Asked by Goodman what made the difference, Wheeler, who led the SEC in assists last season, said he was excited to join a program that would get him in the NCAA Tournament, adding, “a roster that’s set up to win a national championship.”
Wheeler called joining the UK roster “a point guard’s dream,” while adding that he was looking forward to playing with talented players all over the floor and wings who can shoot.
Wheeler is the second KU target to pick the Wildcats in the past week. Late last week, prep point guard Tyty Washington committed to John Calipari’s program, picking UK over KU, Arizona and LSU.
Asked on Monday what he thought about following Washington to Lexington, Kent., Wheeler pointed out that Calipari has never been afraid to put multiple point guards on the floor at the same time.
That very idea is one Kansas coach Bill Self has had a lot of success with throughout his coaching career, particularly at Illinois and Kansas. And Self, in targeting another point guard to add to the 2021-22 roster, also is aiming to get back to that style of play after operating mostly with a primary ballhandler since the 2017-18 season.
The Jayhawks still have one scholarship to hand out and remain in pursuit of several guards, both true point guards and long-range shooters. Most notable on the list is Arizona State transfer Remy Martin, who announced last week that he was entering the transfer portal.
KU’s current recruiting class is ranked No. 14 nationally by Rivals.com. It likely would crack the top 10 if the Jayhawks add another player, which is pretty much a certainty.
Most national publications have Self’s 2021-22 squad as a top-10 team in the national rankings at this point in the offseason. KU is still waiting on NBA draft decisions from guard Ochai Agbaji and wing Jalen Wilson.
If either player elects to remain in the NBA draft pool, KU would have another spot to fill on its roster.