Rising 2026 PG from Kentucky Receives Pitt Offer

The latest offer from Jeff Capel and the Pitt basketball program goes to a rising prospect from Kentucky.

Following a conversation on Wednesday, Capel personally extended an offer to 2026-point guard Cole Edelen from Louisville, Kentucky.

Various recruiting analysts have previously written that the 6’2″ Edelen is a very underrated player and that his recruitment from major programs will eventually take off. Following this offer from Pitt and his recent performance with the Wildcat Select AAU team, now could be that time.

Edelen’s biggest strength is his shooting as evidenced by a recent performance against the Atlanta Celtics (GA) where he finished with 28 points, including 8-for-10 from behind the 3-point arc. Aside from his shooting ability, Edelen can get to the hoop and is a gritty player on both sides of the ball.

This wasn’t just another offer from Edelen, it was his first one from a high-major program, which is obviously memorable.

Pittsburgh Sports Now had the chance to talk with Edelen this morning about the offer and his conversation with Capel.

“Coach called me and my coach last night, we were on a group call, and he was telling me how he loved my game, talking about how he saw me play over the weekend (in Omaha, Nebraska),” said Edelen. “He told me that he’d really like to get me down there as soon as possible and that he wants me to make that home.”

“Getting that first major offer is crazy. You literally grow up, working in the gym as a kid dreaming of getting an offer and when you get your first one, you’re like OK, I just wanna get more and more. But when you get your first major one, you think about the countless hours in the gym that you’ve put in with the memories, blood, sweat, tears, wow. I still haven’t stopped smiling over this offer and I’m super excited.”

Edelen tells me that Capel watched two of his games over the game and was impressed with a number of things which led to the offer.

Indiana Elite gets revenge on Game Elite from a few weeks ago. 2026 G Cole Edelen nails a game-winning 3 in the final seconds.

He was impressive as a shooter throughout the game. Indiana Elite will face Arizona Unity in the Championship.@IndianaElite @ColeEdelen @MaleHighBBall https://t.co/zq01paHX2j pic.twitter.com/mQmez2zy6D

— Trent Markwith (@TMarkwith14) July 25, 2024

“He really liked my shooting and my feel for the game and my basketball IQ,” said Edelen. “The way that I’m able to make the people around me better. You can be a really good shooter but when your shot isn’t falling, you’ve got to find ways to positively impact the game. He said that I do a really good job of not just effecting the game on the shooting level but with my basketball IQ also.”

Last night was the first conversation that Edelen has had with Capel and afterwards, he felt very comfortable with Capel, who even talked some trash with the sharpshooter.

“He was super cool. We started off the conversation talking about the tournament and then go to start talking about the NBA and he tried to say that he was a better shooter than me (laughing). I had to tell him I don’t know about that one, but you can definitely tell he gets along with his players really well and I really enjoyed the call with him.”

As they finished the conversation, Capel made sure Edelen know that he’d like him to get to visit Pittsburgh ASAP.

“We’re off (AAU team) for a little bit,” said Edelen. “Actually, all of June. So, I think I’m gonna try and go up there as soon as possible. Coach said he wants me tup there as soon as I can, so I think one of the next few weekends that I’m gonna try and go up there and take a visit. After that, we have two more tournaments in LA and somewhere else. So, I’m definitely gonna try and get up there as soon as possible for a visit.”