Kentucky has historically had great success on the recruiting trail, but there have also been some notorious recruiting misses, failures and what-ifs.
As college basketball’s premier program, Kentucky has enjoyed a wealth of success on the recruiting trail—and ultimately on the basketball court. In that regard, UK fans have little reason to complain. That said, it's fun to play the "what if" game. Naturally not every great recruit chooses Kentucky, so there have been plenty of missed opportunities. Here are just a few of Kentucky’s notorious recruiting Misses, Failures and What-Ifs:
1958: Jerry Lucas – Jerry Lucas was said to have sent Adolph Rupp packing after the Baron made a spontaneous recruiting visit to Lucas’ high school (much to the dismay of Lucas).