College basketball recruiting juggernaut Kentucky is in a tough fight with five ACC schools for 2016 top skipper, Dennis Smith.
Since John Calipari took over the head coaching position of the Kentucky Wildcats, they have dominated the college recruiting scene-until rivals from the most competitive conference came along.
For the past two years, Duke University, lords of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) edged out Calipari's impressive crews in recruiting. It culminated in Duke winning its fifth title in the Coach K era last April.
The 2014 class of Duke had no.1 prospect Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow, but Kentucky's Karl Anthony Towns still ended up as the first overall pick in the NBA Draft.
For the 2016 Recruiting wars, it's expected that the two titan schools will cross paths again. Duke has one foot ahead was they already nabbed Jayson Tatum, the no.2 overall recruit. Tatum also considered Kentucky.
Now, the two schools are locking in on Dennis Smith, Jr, the top point guard in the class of 2016 and the 4th overall player in the ESPN 100 list.
According to ESPN's Recruiting Nation, Smith recently narrowed down his choices to six schools: Kentucky, and five ACC schools - North Carolina, Duke, Wake Forest, NC State and Louisville.
That list has four future of Hall of Fame coaches manning the bench, and there's no doubt that Smith is worth the attention. He is noted for his explosiveness and athleticism that allows him to blow through defenses. One notable trait is that he has the instinct to keep attacking yet he is also unselfish and gets his teammates involved.
Smith reminds some people of Derrick Rose, a Calipari recruit back when he was coaching Memphis. Rose eventually became a first overall pick in 2008 and won the NBA MVP award in 2011.