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Four-star Kentucky commit Braydon Hawthorne recently sat down for a chat on the "Wired to the Game" podcast. In Tuesday's episode, the 6-foot-8 forward opened up about his journey as a basketball player, his playing style, what drives him and what he's looking forward to as he gets ready to take the next step with the Kentucky Wildcats.
When asked about his future at Kentucky, Hawthrone expressed his goal of bringing a national championship to Rupp Arena.
"To win that national," Hawthorne said (Timestamp: 19:48). "We're gonna win that national championship, bro. That's the team goal. And then, just to get closer with my teammates. Individually, it's just about growing every day as a player and as a person, bro. That's really important to me."
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When asked what he thinks it takes to reach that national championship goal, Braydon Hawthorne said: (Timestamp: 2:05)
"Just coming in, working hard every day, bro. And like, just getting after it. And then believing in yourself is another big thing. I think they had a pretty good team last year, bro. And with some of the returners coming back, I feel like we can do it. I feel like we can do it."
Braydon Hawthorne will join fellow 2025 prospects Malachi Moreno, Jasper Johnson and Andrija Jelavic, all Kentucky Wildcats signees.
"The coaching staff meant a lot to me," Braydon Hawthorne said about what made Kentucky stand out to him.
On Tuesday's episode of the "Wired to the Game" podcast, Braydon Hawthorne also spoke about his recruitment journey and what led to his eventual commitment to Kentucky.
Before making his decision, Hawthorne had 10 college offers on the table, including offers from powerhouse programs like Duke, West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech. When asked what made Kentucky a stand-out option for him, he said:
"The coaching staff, bro, meant a lot to me. And like, one of the assistant coaches, Coach Hart, I had a relationship with him prior, like last year. He was recruiting me. I had ended up committing to West Virginia before he even came back to watch me. So that meant something."
He emphasized how much of a role Kentucky coach Mark Pope played throughout the entire recruitment process.
And then Coach Pope, bro, he's such a people person," Hawthorne added (Timestamp: 13:31). "Like, you can call him and talk to him about anything. Me and him have been on the phone, FaceTiming, calls, texts, just talking about anything, bro. That means a lot too."
Braydon Hawthorne initially committed to West Virginia; however, he made the decision to reopen his commitment after coach Darian DeVries left for Indiana. After visits to Kentucky, Duke, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech and West Virginia under their new coach, Ross Hodge, he eventually opted to play for coach Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats.
