At his introductory press conference back in April, Mark Pope touched on his roster building. While he will recruit players that will be around 3-4 years, and from the portal, he’ll also continue to recruit 5-stars and McDonald’s All-Americans just as John Calipari did.

It’s too late to do that for this coming season, but for future seasons, Pope and the rest of the Kentucky staff have been busy on the recruiting trail looking ahead at some of the best high school talent in the 2025 and 2026 classes.

One of those players is Brandon McCoy, the consensus No. 1 player in the 2026 class.

A 6-foot-5 guard, with long arms and a fluid frame, McCoy has great size. He also has great skill, highlighted by his cunning handling, which enable him to score and assist others. McCoy has one of the highest ceilings in the class due to his size, ability, and feel for the game; it is understandable why he is one of the greatest and most sought-after players in the class.

He has already earned offers from more than a dozen high-major universities, including UCLA, Tennessee, and Kansas, as his recruiting heats up for his junior year.

At the Nike EYBL session in Indianapolis this past weekend, McCoy told Kentucky Sports Radio that he has not heard from Mark Pope and the Kentucky staff yet, but he is looking forward to hearing from them.

“I haven’t talked to him (Pope) yet, never met him. But I hope to!” McCoy said. “Hope to build a relationship and meet him, definitely look forward to that in the future… I don’t know too much about (Kentucky) since it’s a new staff, but I know, of course, in previous years it was a really good team. I’m looking forward to meeting him and really seeing how he is.”

That will likely change soon as Pope and assistant Jason Hart sat courtside for multiple games at recent AAU events, and both have West Coast recruiting connections that could help in pursuing the California prospect.

McCoy will make clear that he never had a dream school, but an offer from Kentucky is a goal that he had written on his wall as a kid.

“I don’t have a dream school at all, just a couple of offers I really want to get, that are written on my wall. They are Kentucky and Duke. I had that offer written on my wall, hoping to get that. Hopefully, I get the re-offer from Mark Pope, as well.”

Until that offer comes, McCoy is going to continue working hard, which is what led him to become the No. 1 player in his class.