Mark Pope has to land these three recruits in 2025

These recruits would fit well in Pope's system.

Kentucky head basketball coach Mark Pope listened while Louisville basketball coach Pat Kelsey spoke at the 2024 Leadership Louisville Luncheon at the Kentucky International Convention Center in downtown Louisville on Wednesday, August 28, 2024. / Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal & USA Today Network / USA TODAY NETWORK

Mark Pope has hit the ground running on the recruiting trail since taking over as the Kentucky head coach. His incredible energy has him now with two commits to begin his first recruiting class at Kentucky, with in-state stars Malachi Moreno and Jasper Johnson. Both of which are now helping Pope recruit in the 2025 class to bring others with them.

Who does the head coach need to land along with those two in 2025? Pope has many options, but there are three that would be massive additions. One of those is top-20 forward Tounde Yessoufou, who actually has something in common with Pope, and that is his energy. In a recent interview with On3's Jamie Shaw, he discussed Pope's pitch to him.

"His message to me is that he wants me to play for him because I am a great person and how hard I play. He says he enjoys watching me play every time. He always gives me advice to stay mentally strong out there, even if things don’t go my way, to stick to the plan and move on to the next play. It really matters to me that a coach can tell me what I need to hear, the truth."

- Tounde Yessoufou to On3's Jamie Shaw

On top of Yessoufou, there is another major target in the class that the Wildcats need to land, and that is sharpshooting guard Braylon Mullins, a top-20 guard in the class of 2025. He is the perfect player for a Mark Pope offense that likes to shoot a lot of threes. Also something to watch for is his AAU teammate, Malachi Moreno, who is currently committed to the Wildcats, might already be trying to recruit Mullins to Lexington. He hit an impressive 47% of this three-point attempts in the Adidas 3SSB circuit this summer.

Another player who Moreno and Johnson are trying to recruit to join them is Acaden Lewis, a top-40 guard in the class. The entire Kentucky staff have Lewis very high on their list, as they even had an in-home visit with the four-star guard earlier this week. Following the commitment of Jasper Johnson, many assumed Kentucky would then be out of the Acaden Lewis sweepstakes, but the staff is liking the idea of Lewis playing alongside Johnson in the backcourt.

All of these players would fit great in Mark Pope's system, and all are one's that the head coach needs to land to join Malachi Moreno and Jasper Johnson in Kentucky's 2025 class.