TheCatsDomain.Com Message Boards: UK “right there” for Jalen Duren, all hands on deck at Peach Jam

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Posted by catmandoo (Member # 1284) on 07-18-2021, 11:11 AM:

If Kentucky is out of the running for Jalen Duren, you wouldn’t know it by watching the coaching staff in action this weekend at the 2021 EYBL Peach Jam.

With college coaches allowed to attend the prestigious recruiting event starting Friday morning with the opening of the NCAA’s fourth evaluation period of the summer, UK head coach John Calipari was front and center to watch the nation’s No. 1 overall prospect in the class of 2022 take the floor in both of Team Final’s matchups, with assistant coach Orlando Antigua joining him for the first and Jai Lucas watching in the second.

As expected, Kentucky wasn’t alone on the jam-packed sidelines at the Riverview Park Activities Center in North Augusta. Miami (FL) head coach Jim Larrañaga and Memphis head coach Penny Hardaway were both there with their lead assistants, with the former sitting courtside with DJ Irving – Duren’s former high school and grassroots coach – and the latter sitting with basketball legend Larry Brown, who was hired back on July 8.

And that’s just the college coaches. Rod Strickland of the NBA G League was also in attendance for both games, meaning four of Duren’s final five options – Australia’s NBL being the lone holdout – were front and center to see the top frontcourt prospect in all of high school basketball.

To no one’s surprise, Duren – a 6-foot-10, 245-pound monster of a human – dominated in both outings, finishing with 17 points (6-8 FG), 11 rebounds and two blocks in a game one win over Seattle Rotary and 17 points (6-11 FG), 10 rebounds, three assists, two blocks and a steal in a game two victory over Phenom University. Through five games, the five-star center is now averaging 15.2 points (60% FG), 10.0 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 1.6 assists in just 21.8 minutes per contest.

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