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March 28, 2024

UNLV basketball hitting recruiting trail for first time under Kevin Kruger

UNLV Basketball Head Coach Kevin Kruger

Steve Marcus

UNLV Basketball Head Coach Kevin Kruger poses in Mendenhall Center on UNLV campus Tuesday, June 15, 2021.

Updated Friday, July 9, 2021 | 12:20 p.m.

Uzan and Jefferson take center stage

UNLV head coach Kevin Kruger is in Birmingham for the Adidas 3SSB Live event, and he is keeping an eye on priority targets Milos Uzan and Joshua Jefferson.

Uzan and Jefferson are both local recruits in the Class of 2022, and they're suiting up for Dream Vision this summer. Uzan, a 6-foot-4 point guard, is a 4-star recruit and rated as the No. 67 player in the country by 247 Sports. He played his first two high-school seasons at Desert Pines before moving to Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) in 2020, where he averaged 13 points, six assists and five rebounds per game. Jefferson, a 6-foot-7 forward, plays his high-school ball for Liberty and is currently ranked as a 3-star recruit.

UNLV basketball hitting recruiting trail for first time under Kevin Kruger

College basketball is back to normal, and that includes recruiting.

Schools are now allowed to host prospects on visits — one of the first activities to get shut down when the coronavirus pandemic hit in March 2020 — and coaches will be able to hit the road for live evaluation events beginning this weekend.

It’s a busy four-day window for coaches, including UNLV head man Kevin Kruger and his assistants, who will be traveling to watch players this weekend. Between an Under Armour session in Georgia, an Adidas showcase in Alabama and the Las Vegas Basketball Royalty event being held at Bishop Gorman (and more), there is a ton of hoops happening and a lot of players to assess.

A quick primer on UNLV’s recruiting situation as the summer gets underway:

How many spots?

Due to fundamental changes in the way teams are constructed, it’s impossible to predict how many players UNLV will eventually bring in as part of its 2022 recruiting class. The days of looking at the 2021-22 roster, counting the seniors and then expecting that many incoming freshmen are over and gone, thanks to instant-eligibility transfers.

So what do we know? We are certain that senior transfers Michael Nuga and Royce Hamm each have one year of college eligibility remaining, so UNLV will have to fill at least those two roster spots. And after flirting with the NBA Draft in each of the last two years, it’s probable that this will be senior guard Bryce Hamilton’s final season. That makes three open scholarships for 2022-23.

There’s no guarantee that any of those spots will be filled by high school prospects, however. Kruger may choose to lean on transfers, as he did in his first offseason (though perhaps not by choice), to fill the gaps with experience players.

Pop Isaacs, point guard

Isaacs has quickly become a top priority for Kruger. A Las Vegas native, Isaacs possesses the quickness to get downhill and into the paint, and that’s a trait Kruger values in his point guards.

Isaacs, the No. 34 player in the Class of 2022, said Kruger and assistant Brandon Chappell have been working on him since Kruger got the head job.

“They’re doing some really good things over there as far as culture-wise,” Isaacs said, “and they can see me coming in and having an impact on the program in getting it back to where they want it and where it needs to be.”

Isaacs will be playing nearby this weekend at the Las Vegas Basketball Royalty event with his AAU team, Y Not.

Elijah Saunders, forward

Saunders was largely unranked coming into the summer, but the 6-foot-8 forward is under the radar no longer. Saunders has gained momentum recently and has picked up offers from UNLV and San Diego State in the past week.

An Arizona native, Saunders is suiting up for California powerhouse program Compton Magic this summer and will be in Birmingham, Ala., this weekend for the Adidas 3SSB event.

Cameron Corhen, center

Corhen is another big man drawing interest from UNLV, as Kruger offered the 6-foot-9 pivot in April. Corhen averaged 13.4 points and 6.9 rebounds per game as a junior, and his offensive game shows promise as an inside-out frontcourt weapon.

There is stiff competition for his services, as Corhen also holds offers from Kansas, Illinois, Texas, Florida State and Virginia Tech.

Sam Murray, forward

Like Saunders and Corhen, Murray is a burgeoning frontcourt player who is garnering major interest from Big 12 country. Baylor and Texas have offered the 3-star recruit, as has Mississippi State.

Murray averaged 9.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game last year for Harrison Central (Gulfport, Miss.). Kruger offered him in April.

Kaden Cooper, wing

Cooper is the No. 2 prospect in the state of Oklahoma, which could be a good sign for UNLV since current assistant (and former Oklahoma assistant) Carlin Hartman is acting as the lead recruiter for Cooper.

As a junior last season, Cooper posted 18 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals per game. He’s playing for ProSkills Basketball on the Nike EYBL circuit and will compete at the Great American Shootout in Duncanville, Texas, this weekend.

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.

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