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Getting commitments from in-state players Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno is a huge boost for Kentucky coach Mark Pope for several reasons according to Paul Biancardi, recruiting director for ESPN.

“Those are two guys who love the game and love Kentucky and that is really important. They can help Kentucky win in different ways,” said Biancardi. “Jasper is a little more polished now. Big players take longer to develop because they have less opportunities in high school. But both are going to be excellent players for Kentucky.”

Johnson is a 6-5 shooting guard and consensus top 15 player nationally who turned down North Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisville and many others. Moreno is a 7-foot center who had a bevy of big-time offers before choosing Kentucky about two weeks before Johnson did.

“We don’t talk about character enough,” Biancardi said. “The ability to have character on the court is a talent. You want a certain on-court character and traits. Off the court you want integrity, respect and responsibility. But on court character traits count, too and these guys are both high character kids on and off the court.”

Sporting News columnist Mike DeCourcy believes getting commitments from both in-state players proves that Pope is an “effective” recruiter who has a lot to sell with the staff he built and all UK has to offer.

“I think what it suggests is that in a period when the future is really murky for every prospect you bring in except those that are immediate starters and stars and not knowing how long you will have this person on campus for how long before he might decide to look somewhere else is that Mark Pope can recruit,” DeCourcy said.

“Getting someone to commit to you that also has a great investment in the school is a huge bonus. If you can get a high end prospect like Jasper and get him to be a Wildcat and be on a track more like PJ Washington rather than a John Wall, then that increases the chances he will spend a second year in a UK uniform rather than seeking the transfer portal as an easy out.”

DeCourcy doesn’t think it was necessary to get both Johnson and Moreno for Pope to send a message about what he could do at UK recruiting-wise.

“If he didn’t get these two and went empty in the fall (recruiting period)maybe that would send a negative message. Jasper is a five-star player and huge recruit but if he were (Duke signee) Cooper Flagg and grew up in Paintsville or Lexington and UK missed on him, it would maybe be different. Jasper and Malachi are going to be really good players but it is not likely either will have the kind of impact Anthony Davis did.”

Moreno, the 7-foot Great Crossing center, made it clear at his commitment ceremony that he wanted Johnson to be his future teammate. Johnson, a 6-5 guard, was just as adamant about wanting to play with Moreno after making his commitment last week.

“I certainly know how good he is and what he can do down low. He is a force inside,” Johnson said. “Having him as a teammate is a really good thing. I have seen him play since we were kids. I was happy when he committed (to UK) and now we will be playing together.”

Biancardi said while Johnson is higher rated than Johnson, he likes the way Moreno continues to develop his game.

“If you are in the top 100 (players in the recruiting class), you are still a high level prospect and Moreno is,” Biancardi said. “He has excellent timing when he is blocking shots and you just cannot teach that. He has very good hands and is a very good passing big man. He can do a lot more than just score with his back to the basket and block shots.

“He’s an emerging prospect and hard worker who loves being in the gym just like Jasper does. There just are not a lot of high profile recruits in Kentucky and when you get two like this in one class, that’s really a huge plus for Kentucky.”