Tuesday Headlines: Taylen Kinney begins visit with Kentucky Basketball

It may be the middle of the offseason for Kentucky basketball but head coach Mark Pope is always hard at work, especially this week as he hosts Taylen Kinney — the No. 1 point guard in the Class of 2026.

Kinney, standing 6-1, is currently playing for Overtime Elite and ranks as the No. 11 overall prospect in next year’s class. He was teammates with incoming UK guard Jasper Johnson this past season and is originally from Newport, KY., which should only help his recruitment to play for the Wildcats.

Jasper Johnson, Malachi Moreno, and Taylen Kinney getting busy at the U19 USA Training Camp. pic.twitter.com/mui1lhUhU8

— Casey (@BleedBlueCasey) June 16, 2025

He’s also spent time with Johnson and fellow KY native/incoming Wildcat Malachi Moreno during Team USA’s U19 training camp.

During his recruitment, Kinney has visited Louisville and Purdue already this year. He also currently has plans to visit Oregon later on in 2025. The top point guard has interest from Alabama, too.

Pope and his staff have met with Kinney several times — unofficially — so this visit should only strengthen the relationship between the two sides.

Check back with A Sea of Blue for more updates throughout Kinney’s recruitment.

Tweet of the Day

Kahlil Whitney joins LA FAMILIA

The Kentucky Alumni keep adding more firepower ‼️

Bracket Reveal: Tomorrow at 10AM

Catch the Wildcat Alumni at HOME in Lexington: https://t.co/lzpdoA6C5n pic.twitter.com/zh8VZ1yxod

— TBT (@thetournament) June 23, 2025

They just keep adding to this roster.

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