Kentucky Target Ansley Almonor is ‘A Juggernaut of a Shooter’

Kentucky is hosting Farleigh Dickinson transfer Ansley Almonor for a visit on Tuesday. The two-time All-NEC forward has developed a reputation as a knockdown shooter for his position.

Pete Wehye is the Athletic Director of Our Saviour Lutheran, a prep school in the Bronx, New York. While Wehye also coaches the program’s national team, Ansley joined OSL’s prep team in 2020 after graduating from Saint Joseph Regional (Montvale, NJ).

“Ansley needed a chance to come and really develop to catapult his situation,” Wehye told KSR+. “He came to us after his senior year was over. When he came, he wanted to go D1, but only had D3s recruiting him. He came and put in the work from the first day he came in until the day he left.”

Almonor averaged 16.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game for Farleigh Dickinson during the 2023-24 season. When Wehye sees him play, there’s one clear strength that stands out more than anything else.

“The kid is a juggernaut of a shooter,” Wehye said. “He has a high IQ and is a very intelligent kid. Whatever plays you put together, he can follow them to a tee.”

Ansley Almonor’s Path to Division 1 Basketball

When Ansley Almonor joined Pete Wehye’s program at Our Saviour Lutheran, he had a few low-major offers but wasn’t where he wanted to be. By the end of his prep season, he had a couple of Division II offers, but that wasn’t enough for him.

“I’ll never forget this,” Wehye said. “We set up a combine for him and three other players. We put it on a live stream for coaches to watch. He shot like 90 for 100. A little school that you would never think took a chance on him, FDU. The rest is history.”

Even before that performance, what Almonor showed throughout the season was enough for Wehye to believe in his ability as a stretch-four. Despite being 6-foot-8, Wehye saw him as someone who could extend beyond the paint.

“He shoots the piss out of the basketball,” Wehye said. “Right now, he’s a prototypical four in what they do in today’s basketball game. He can shoot the basketball with unlimited range from anywhere on the court. This boy was born a shooter, so I didn’t want to take that away from him. We allowed him to be himself. That’s the kid you see today.”

That ability caused problems for opponents in the NCAA Tournament. Namely, 7-foot-4 center Zach Edey, who matched up with Almonor in No. 16-seed FDU’s stunning upset over No. 1-seed Purdue in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

“He has unlimited range,” Wehye said. “You cannot leave him open. Even if you want to play small ball, you put him at the five and he’s going to be a nightmare for the five, just like it was for Edey in the NCAA Tournament. He’s a superstar role player. You can put him in any system and he’ll flourish because of his ability to shoot and his high IQ for the game of basketball.”

‘The Sky is the Limit’

With Ansley Almonor being recruited by Kentucky, Pete Wehye has seen him go full circle. He’s turned from a player with only low-major offers to one of the best transfers in the nation.

“Kentucky calling him is literally a dream come true,” Wehye said. “A kid who has a belief in himself and can push through. That’s something that’s nothing short of amazing. I knew it would get here.”

Almonor discussed potentially entering the transfer portal after FDU’s 2023 NCAA Tournament run. Instead, he stayed loyal to the program that took a chance on him.

“Now, after he was loyal, the sky is the limit,” Wehye said. “Kentucky knows what they’re doing. He’s an older guy who knows what he wants and his next goal is to get back to that NCAA Tournament and get more wins.”

Since Almonor was in Wehye’s program, he’s further improved his toughness. At first, he was a player that wanted to be successful.

“Now, it’s to the point where he needs it,” Wehye said.

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