Analyst says DJ Wagner’s Biggest Growth in the Last Year has Been off the Court

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National basketball analyst/recruiting writer Krysten Peek of Rivals/Yahoo knows it will take freshmen guards DJ Wagner, Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard “time to figure out their rhythm” next season and there will likely be “growing pains” no matter what other guards might be on the 2023-24 roster.

“DJ is a ball dominant guard. Dillingham is ball dominant and loves to get downhill,” Peek said. “You ask them both how this is going to work out at Kentucky and they say they are not worried. They say they trust Cal (coach John Calipari) and his staff. I just think it might take longer for them to find that rhythm than some people think.”

Peek knows all the guards, including Sheppard, want the process to work and noted that Wagner played off the ball in some of the postseason all-star games.

“But when things are on the line, the ball gravitates to him,” Peek said. “HIs entire life the ball has been in his hands. If you ask him not to be the primary ball handler and step to the side, I think he could have a little trouble with that.”

Peek watched Calipari ask TyTy Washington and Cason Wallace, natural point guards, to play off the ball the last two seasons and let Sahvir Wheeler run the point.

“It probably helped both of them (Washington and Wallace) because in the NBA you have to be a hybrid who can play either guard but I think it could be trouble if DJ is asked to play primarily off the ball,” Peek said.

The basketball analyst has watched Wagner work to grow his game in different areas the last few years even though he has been hyped as one of the nation’s best recruits for several years.

Peek saw USC signee Isaiah Collier, a 2023 top-10 recruit, emerge as a “great pass-first guard” the last year who is fun to watch make plays in various ways. However, Wagner has made his biggest jump in an area that could really help him at Kentucky.

“DJ’s biggest growth in his game has been off the court. He is really good at talking to the media now and that wasn’t always true,” she said. “I even asked him recently about the brawl (that ended his high school team’s season) and he had an answer and a great answer about every time you step on the court you have to learn positives and negatives from it.

“That to me is the biggest area of growth in DJ for me. He’s going to have a lot of NIL deals and he’s much more comfortable in front of the camera. He is going to be okay at Kentucky where everything he does will be watched and scrutinized. But I really think he’s ready for that part of his career now, too.”

Peek recently unveiled her “way-too-early-look” at the 2024 NBA Draft. She put the 6-4 Wagner as a lottery pick by ranking him 13th on her list. His father, Dajuan Wagner, and grandfather, Milt Wagner, both played in the NBA and also played in the McDonald’s All-Star Game like the UK signee did.

“He’s always had a lot of attention on him because of his special skills,” Peek said. “I think now he’s ready whatever comes his way on and off the court at Kentucky.”