Kentucky signs local 4-star center Malachi Moreno

Kentucky coach Mark Pope secured a top talent — and standout player from the state — on Friday when Malachi Moreno, a four-star center in the class of 2025, announced his commitment to the Wildcats.

Moreno, a Georgetown, Kentucky native and the 36th-ranked recruit of his class according to ESPN, is the first signing of Kentucky’s new head coach in the class of 2025, who left BYU in April to replace John Calipari.

Moreno is a talented 7-foot-4 player and one of the few true centers in his class as more big men seek the “positionless” label. But he isn’t Pope’s only target.

Five-star 6-foot-4 Jasper Johnson of Lexington tops that list, which also includes Tounde Yessoufou, Chris Cenac Jr. and Braylon Mullins, who plays with Moreno at Indiana Elite.

Moreno is best known for scoring with his back to the basket on both blocks and shots. The timing of his blocks is impressive. He waits for the offensive player to release the ball, which is instinctive. He focuses on rebounding. He does a good job of rebounding the ball high and holding it up for putbacks. He also possesses passing vision toward the basket, allowing him to operate on the perimeter as a high-low passer, blocker, and on dribble handoffs. He also shows a lot of basketball IQ to operate in the half court, as he is good at avoiding blocks. If he develops a strong foundation of functional strength, he will play with a lower base and not be as easy to move. His shooting still has room for improvement, but he has feel.

Moreno made the announcement before a large audience at his high school in Georgetown, Kentucky (Great Crossing High School).

“There will be 1,800 students in our gymnasium for this announcement,” Moreno told ESPN. “It’s exciting.”

Pope, a former center who helped Kentucky to the 1996 national title before spending a decade in the NBA, is known for a style that still uses big men as key players on offense, a fact that influenced Moreno’s decision.

“I chose Kentucky because of Coach Pope’s style of play,” Moreno said. “He likes to play through the big men and make them pass. That’s a big part of my game. Since the day the new staff got the job, they’ve been consistently recruiting me. Coach Pope won a national title here as a player, so he knows what it takes to be great at Kentucky. I got an offer from (Calipari) and had to start over with Coach Pope. I had to earn my scholarship twice.”

Moreno also said that Kentucky’s tradition of training “big men” – a group that includes several NBA stars – also influenced his final decision.

“Kentucky’s campus is beautiful,” he said. “There are no better fans. Growing up, I dreamed of playing there. I saw their big men. Nerlens Noel, Willie Cauley-Stein, Anthony Davis and Nick Richards. I plan to study education and become a teacher one day. My teachers have helped me so much over the years. I want to do that for the next generation.”

Jeff Borzello contributed to this report.