McDonald’s All-American Boogie Fland, a former UK basketball signee, commits to new school
One of the three McDonald’s All-Americans who committed to play for Kentucky basketball — and who then decommitted following John Calipari’s departure as head coach — has found a new college basketball home.
On Thursday, Boogie Fland — a 6-foot-2 guard from just outside New York City — announced he would be following John Calipari to Arkansas for his freshman season.
Fland took an official visit to the Razorbacks that started Wednesday night.
Considered a three-level scorer who can make shots from long range and an active defender, Fland was the second player who committed to Kentucky in the 2024 recruiting class. In October, Fland picked UK from a final list of schools that also included Alabama and Indiana.
Fland is ranked as a five-star recruit and the No. 18 overall prospect in the 2024 recruiting class by the 247Sports Composite. He had signed a national letter of intent to play at UK, but Fland was released from that paperwork.
Of course, Fland’s commitment came when Calipari was still the head coach in Lexington. Fland decommitted from UK on April 15, well after Calipari was announced as the new head coach at Arkansas and less than a day after Kentucky formally introduced Mark Pope as its new head coach.
“(Calipari) said, ‘You come in, and be you.’ ... He basically said I could come in there and be myself,” Fland told the Herald-Leader in January. “Why not go to that program, go to that coach or where the coaches are believing in me to do what I do?”
From Kentucky’s 2024 recruiting class, which was assembled by Calipari and ranked second in the country, five of the six players have decommitted.
In addition to Fland, small forwards Karter Knox and Billy Richmond and centers Jayden Quaintance and Somto Cyril have all also decommitted from UK following the coach change.
Knox has already announced that he will be playing for Calipari in Fayetteville.
Only in-state guard Travis Perry — the all-time leading scorer in Kentucky high school boys basketball history — is expected to remain with the Wildcats through this time of transition. Perry confirmed his commitment to Pope and Kentucky earlier this week.
MARK POPE BUILDS HIS FIRST KENTUCKY BASKETBALL ROSTER
First-year Kentucky head coach Mark Pope will be building his first UK basketball roster from scratch.
Aaron Bradshaw (Ohio State), Joey Hart (Ball State) and Zvonimir Ivisic (Arkansas) are players from the 2023-24 Kentucky squad that will transfer to new schools. Additionally, Jordan Burks, Adou Thiero, Ugonna Onyenso and D.J. Wagner are still in the NCAA transfer portal.
Thiero has a return to Kentucky among his final five options. The other schools on his list are Arkansas (where he’d rejoin Calipari), Indiana, North Carolina and Pittsburgh.
Also from last season’s team, Rob Dillingham, Justin Edwards and Reed Sheppard have declared for the 2024 NBA draft. Tre Mitchell and Antonio Reeves have exhausted their college eligibility.
So far, Pope’s first Kentucky roster has three players.
Collin Chandler, a combo guard and former BYU signee, announced he would be following Pope to Kentucky. Chandler was a four-star prospect in the 2022 recruiting class before taking a two-year mission trip.
On Sunday afternoon, Pope made his first transfer portal addition of the offseason: Former Drexel big man Amari Williams committed to UK.
And earlier this week, Travis Perry — the all-time leading scorer in Kentucky high school boys basketball history — pledged to stick with UK despite the coaching change.
Pope has already filled four of his five allotted assistant coach spots.
College basketball players (including graduate transfers) have until May 1 to enter the transfer portal. The early-entry deadline for the 2024 NBA draft is April 27, and players who enter the draft with remaining NCAA eligibility will have until May 29 to remove their names from consideration and return to school.
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