Trent Noah adds ‘physicality’ and ‘elite’ shooting ability to Kentucky….

Trent Noah brings another elite skillset to Kentucky as he commits and signs with the Wildcats.

Kentucky and Mark Pope added another elite skillset to their roster on Wednesday as local four-star wing Trent Noah made the call to stay home and commit to the Wildcats.

Originally signing with South Carolina, Noah took a step back this week and re-opened his recruitment. Shortly after, rumors began circulating that a commitment to Kentucky would be in his near future. That it was, as just one day after decommitting from South Carolina he flipped his pledge.

Noah is a terrific scorer and shooter and ended his high school career at Harlan County (Ky.) ranked in the top-5 of Kentucky high school basketball scoring. He finished his high school career with 3,707 points, and averaged 29.9 points as a senior.

Now, he’s bringing that ‘elite’ shooting ability to Lexington.

“Trent Noah is one of the elite shooters in this class,” Pope said when Noah signed. “He is a tough, hard-nosed player with a special physicality.”

Pope made it clear when he took over the Kentucky program that he wanted local prospects to want to play at Kentucky, but also that he was going to prioritize local players.

He’s done so.

“As an eastern Kentucky native, Trent will bring a grit, toughness and determination to the program that is representative of this state,” Pope added. “We’re looking forward to Trent joining this talented group.”

Not only did he do that with Noah, he also pairs him up with Kentucky’s all-time high school leading scorer Travis Perry.

Joining the local Kentucky prospects Noah and Perry is Utah native Collin Chandler, the trio making up the 2024 high school class for Mark Pope.

 

Travis Perry knows Trent Noah’s game better than most, having competed against his great friend and future Kentucky teammate for many years.

Travis Perry will never forget the night Trent Noah scored 48 points in the Boys’ Sweet 16 Tournament last March.

With Lyon County having already won its first two games to advance to the Final Four, the eventual national champions stuck around Rupp Arena to watch the evening session where Noah’s Harlan County team defeated Campbell County 85-71 in overtime.

 

Karl-Anthony Towns wins Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion Award

Towns has also led the Minnesota Timberwolves to the cusp of the Western Conference Finals.

Former Kentucky big man Karl-Anthony Towns has been awarded the 2023-24 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion Award it was announced by the NBA League Office on Thursday.

He will be presented the award prior to the third game of the Western Conference semifinals on Friday against the Denver Nuggets.

The award is in its fourth year. All 30 NBA teams nominate one player from their roster to be the winner. Finalists and the winner are selected by a committee composed of NBA legends, league executives and social justice leaders. A $100,000 contribution is made on the winner’s behalf by the NBA to an organization of his selection. Towns chose his donation to go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Twin Cities to advance health equity.

Towns’ honor in 2023-24 has been sparked by serving as an advocate of voting rights. He played a major role in helping with the passage of Minnesota’s Restore the Vote bill, a bipartisan legislation that restored the right to vote for more than 55,000 former incarcerated individuals. Towns is also an executive producer and key investor in the documentary Forgiving Johnny, which details how digital transformation has aided change in the legal justice system. Furthermore, he provided funding to the film Origin and is a board member of the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition.

The Piscataway, New Jersey, native has been a mainstay in the community since entering the NBA as the No. 1 overall pick in 2015. In November of 2021, he was awarded the month-long NBA Cares Community Assist Award. Towns’ sustained community outreach efforts have been focused on youth, health and wellness and social justice.

In May of 2021, Towns participated in “A Conversation on Policing Reform” hosted by the NBSJC with other members of the NBA family and lawmakers to discuss police reform.

Following the death of his mother, Jackie, to COVID-19 early in the pandemic, Towns focused on supporting issues related to the virus, including providing donations to the Mayo Clinic to assist with testing capabilities and availability. He continues to support vaccine education and awareness.

Towns also has a foundation, KAT Team. Its mission is to create a scholarship fund for young adults throughout the United States to increase literacy in underserved communities. KAT Team partners with the United Negro College Fund, which is the largest and most effective minority education organization in the country.

He has also partnered with the House of Charity Food Center in Minneapolis, The Salvation Army and HopeKids throughout his professional career.

Towns is a four-time NBA All-Star and was the 2015-16 NBA Rookie of the Year. He is also a two-time All-NBA selection and is in his ninth year with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Towns and the Wolves captured their first NBA playoff series victory since 2014 with a four-game sweep of the Phoenix Suns and are 2-0 against the defending champion Denver Nuggets. Minnesota’s win over Phoenix marked its first playoff series sweep in franchise history.

In six playoff games in 2024, Towns is logging 20.7 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, while shooting 57.1% from the field and 53.8% from 3-point range.