{"id":1601280,"date":"2024-10-20T15:32:11","date_gmt":"2024-10-20T19:32:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sportscasting.com\/?p=1601280"},"modified":"2024-10-20T15:32:11","modified_gmt":"2024-10-20T19:32:11","slug":"arkansas-basketball-recruiting-can-calipari-flip-chris-cenac","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sportscasting.com\/news\/arkansas-basketball-recruiting-can-calipari-flip-chris-cenac\/","title":{"rendered":"Arkansas Basketball Recruiting: Can Calipari flip Chris Cenac?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Five-star center Chris Cenac will be one of the most coveted prospects in the 2025 class until he commits. The New Orleans, Louisiana native has been linked to LSU for his college basketball career. According to On3\u2019s <\/span>recruitment prediction machine<\/span><\/a>, the Tigers lead the race with a 28% chance to land Cenac.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite LSU\u2019s lead, it might be wiser for Cenac to turn his sights to Arkansas. Cenac took an official visit to Arkansas this weekend. The Razorbacks place fourth in On3\u2019s prediction at 10.6%. John Calipari\u2019s arrival in Fayetteville marks a new era for the Razorbacks, hopefully of success and fortune. Calipari flipped three of his top recruits from the 2024 class to Arkansas from Kentucky.<\/span><\/p>\n

John Calipari’s Draft Success should entice Chris Cenac<\/h3>\n

For Cenac\u2019s eventual NBA aspirations, joining forces with Calipari could be a wise idea. History tells us that Cal\u2019s high-rated recruits tend to be high draft picks at the very least. There\u2019s a long history of Kentucky bigs under Calipari going high in the draft. Across his 15-year Kentucky tenure, NBA teams selected Wildcat 10 bigs in the lottery.<\/span><\/p>\n

Some of these bigs \u2014 DeMarcus Cousins, Anthony Davis and Karl Anthony Towns \u2014 blossomed into NBA stars. Plenty of solid role-player bigs came from the Calipari Wildcats \u2014 PJ Washington, Nerlens Noel, Isaiah Jackson and Patrick Patterson. Cenac\u2019s talent should lend to college success and he\u2019s likely to receive draft buzz under Calipari.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s difficult to project a college team\u2019s roster multiple years out given the volatility of the modern game. But if Cenac commits to Arkansas, his path to playing time early appears clear. Two of Arkansas\u2019s three main bigs, Trevon Brazile and Jonas Aidoo are seniors this season. Only sophomore Zvonimir Ivisic projects as a long-term piece.<\/span><\/p>\n

Chris Cenac’s fit with Arkansas<\/h3>\n

All three of Arkansas\u2019s high-profile freshmen \u2014 Boogie Fland, Karter Knox and Billy Richmond \u2013 are perimeter-oriented players. Assuming they remain with the program past their freshman season, the path is open for an elite talent at center to complete the roster. Cenac will likely feature heavily wherever he goes, but Arkansas\u2019s complementary talent might be the strongest.<\/span><\/p>\n

Google Trends can help us point towards a possible commitment decision. Predictably, Louisiana searches the most for Cenac of all states. Arkansas doesn\u2019t sit far behind at second, though, hinting at the state\u2019s interest in Cenac.<\/span><\/p>\n