Recruiting Report: Kayle Knuckles (2017)
Kayle Knuckles kept getting prodded by some of his eighth grade classmates. Come out for the basketball team, they’d say. You’re tall, they’d remind him. “Everyone was urging me to play because I was the tallest kid in my grade,”…
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Continue ReadingKayle Knuckles kept getting prodded by some of his eighth grade classmates.
Come out for the basketball team, they’d say. You’re tall, they’d remind him.
“Everyone was urging me to play because I was the tallest kid in my grade,” Knuckles said. “I didn’t really want to play, but I finally decided I would. I thought, ‘It’s eighth grade, I might as well.’”
It’s safe to say Knuckles appreciates that prodding now. The 6-foot-6 junior forward at Valor Christian may have been a late bloomer to the sport, but he is blossoming into a bona fide basketball prospect – albeit one who has been flying under the radar.
“Kayle has been playing basketball now for only two years; he has come a long way,” said Knuckles’ club coach with the dynamic Billups 16U Elite squad, Quincy Sanders. “There’s a lot that he doesn’t understand yet, but there’s a lot that he does. Wherever the ball is, that’s where he is. He’s a ball-hawk. He’s like a magnet to the ball.”
Knuckles may still be learning nuances of the game, but he hasn’t had to learn a passion for it. After enjoying his eighth-hoops experience, Knuckles played on the freshman team at Valor Christian and quickly became hooked by the game.
“Freshman year was the first time I started to really get good coaching and playing competitive basketball,” he said. “It took off from there, pretty much.”
Knuckles quit football his freshman year so he could commit to his newfound passion on the hardwood. It helped that he kept growing, and Knuckles said he believes he could get to 6-7 or 6-8 before the growing stops.
The last 12 months, meanwhile, have been about growing his understanding of the game while playing against top-flight competition.
Knuckles played in 19 varsity games for Valor under former coach Ronnie DeGray last season, and he parlayed that experience into a spot on Billups’ highly competitive 16U team that features some of Colorado’s top-ranked juniors – such as Jalen Sanders, Elijah Blake, Jaizec Lottie, Ravel Moody and David Simental, among others.
“We definitely had a really good summer,” Knuckles said. “It was great to play with a and against all that talent.”
Sanders said the young forward’s natural abilities stood out in July.
“He’s athletic and he jumps well,” Sanders said. “His upside is tremendous. He shoots it pretty well from deep.”
Now, Knuckles is determined to play the game he hadn’t played before that eighth grade year once he gets college. He said he has received recruiting letters from Loyola (Md.), as well as some interest University of Denver and Air Force.
Knuckles said he has put a strong focus on his ball-handling and guard-type skills as he prepares himself to potentially play more of a stretch four position in college. For now, though, his focus in on competing for a Valor team that has talent to go around under first year coach Troy Pachner.
“We have great chemistry; we’re always hanging out off the court together,” Knuckles said. “I personally believe we can win state this year. We’ve just got to keep working really hard.”