Using Tyler Herro connections, Kentucky reaches out to Kager Knueppel

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to connect the dots on the last name Knueppel and possible options at the next level. Kon Knueppel had a superstar one-and-done season at Duke and became the No. 4 draft pick in 2025, then went on to finish second in Rookie of the Year voting in the NBA. Now, his younger brother, Kager, is a fast-rising four-star who has gone from fielding local interest as a Wisconsin native to exploding as a can’t-miss talent in his class. Sound familiar?

The 6-10, 220-pound wing averaged 15.8 points on 58/45/83 shooting splits at Nike EYBL Session II in Memphis over the weekend — the first live period of the cycle with hundreds of coaches in attendance. His numbers align with what he did in Session I where he averaged 16.3 points per game on 47/54/89 splits.

It was just another couple of days on the hardwood for the No. 52 prospect in the country, who is expected to take a significant leap toward the top of the rankings sooner rather than later. Coaches sitting there and watching his every move made zero difference.

“There’s a bunch of coaches here watching, but I don’t really feel nervous ever when I play basketball at all,” he said. “I’ve been playing my whole life, so at the end of the day, it’s fine.”

The trajectory is right on schedule, like his older brother, but what about the other stuff? He tells KSR not to just assume he’ll be following in Kon’s footsteps to Durham as a Blue Devil under Jon Scheyer. That’s certainly a top option and there is familiarity with mutual interest — Duke offered in the spring — but he’s open.

“It’s not just 100 percent Duke,” he told KSR. “I’m still gonna — like, it’s my own path, so I’ll see other schools and have interest in them.”

If he’s truly open, could Kentucky jump in the mix under Mark Pope? Interestingly enough, the Wildcats are in contact, thanks to a connection through Knueppel’s AAU coach, Chris Herro — Tyler Herro’s dad, conveniently. That’s allowed Cody Fueger, who is originally from Milwaukee, to jump into the mix with his hometown AAU program.

It’s surface-level for now, he says, but it’s contact nevertheless.

“They are reaching out right now, because Chris Herro — his son went there, so they’re reaching out,” he said. “Cody (Fueger), Coach Cody. That’s it. He’s actually from Wisconsin, so he’s asked me simple questions and stuff.”

Fueger was courtside for several Team Herro games to see Knueppel, so we’ll see where Kentucky decides to go with it. If the Wildcats want to make a move, though, they’ll have to act quickly.

He’s already got visits lined up and, by the sound of things, this recruitment isn’t expected to drag out.

“The only official I went on so far was to Purdue, but I think we have a couple more coming this summer,” he said. “We don’t have a specific date, but Duke is trying to get us down to go on a visit, and I think Michigan, maybe. Those are kind of the two, at least for now.”

What does he like about those three programs?

Purdue: “All the coaches are super awesome. When I went on the official, we got to play a little bit with the guys and then they showed me some video of how I would fit in the program and how they could use me.”

Michigan: “(Winning the national championship) just shows they are a winning program. That’s one of my big things that I want to go for. (Coach May) called me.”

Duke: “They’re also a winning program, and all of the coaches are super awesome. I’ve been down there a lot of times, and it’s super fun. I went to like five or six (of Kon’s games).

Knueppel says that while a commitment isn’t imminent by any stretch of the imagination, there could be movement in the coming months. In other words, don’t expect him to push things back into the spring and get cute with his decision.

“I think it’s gonna happen sooner than later, so not all the way until the high school season, but closer to that,” he said.

The four-star forward is pretty clear about what he’s looking for, too.

“A winning program, that’s the biggest thing,” Knueppel continued. “And then a good coaching staff, good relationship with them, good relationship with the players.”

It helps to have the Herro connection, but the brother(hood) ties are gonna be tough to beat.