On Monday, Kentucky head coach and Moon native John Calipari returned to the Pittsburgh area to watch two young five-star prospects from the Steel City.
Calipari made stops at both Imani Christian and Lincoln Park, watching Imani’s Alier Maluk and Lincoln Park’s Meleek Thomas.
Maluk is a 6-foot-10 forward who is ranked as the No. 21 overall player in the class of 2025 by 247 Sports. He is listed as a five-star prospect by Rivals. He holds offers from Pitt, West Virginia, NC State, LSU, Auburn, Texas A&M, and Seton Hall, and recently visited Duke.
Thomas is ranked as the No. 7 player in the class of 2025, as well as the No. 1 point guard in the nation, per 247 Sports. The 6-foot-3 guard holds offers from Pitt, Missouri, Kansas State, Indiana, and Bryant.
“When you see the five stars by it, it’s a great feeling,” Thomas told Pittsburgh Sports Now in an interview. “It makes you feel like you earned it. I feel like I earned that. But at the same time, I’ve got a lot more to earn. That ranking doesn’t mean anything to me. If I wasn’t ranked anything and I would go pro, that’s all I am worried about.”
Calipari was also in Pittsburgh last year, recruiting former Quaker Valley guard Adou Thiero, who is now a member of the Kentucky roster and is getting ready for his freshman season.