In less than three minutes, while standing at midcourt on Saturday, Karter Knox made a decision that was anticipated for months by many college basketball fans, particularly those in the Tampa Bay area.

But it was not the commitment USF fans wanted.

The former Tampa Catholic standout, one of the nation’s most coveted recruits, announced during halftime of his Overtime Elite game in Atlanta that he would be playing for Kentucky, the school where his older brother, Kevin Knox II, played for a season (2017-18) before becoming a lottery pick with the New York Knicks in the 2018 NBA Draft.

The 6-foot-5 guard picked the Wildcats over the Bulls and Louisville, as well as other options, such as remaining with Overtime Elite.

The four-star recruit is ranked No. 24 nationally in ESPN’s top 100 for the 2025 class. In January, he was selected for the McDonald’s All-American Game, held April 2 in Houston. Knox became the sixth area high school player ever selected for the game – the first since his older brother, Kevin, in 2017.

Joining his brother as a McDonald’s All-American was one of Karter’s goals.

Another is becoming a one-and-done — a player who leaves after one season to enter the NBA draft.

One of the things that intrigued Karter about Kentucky was its history of sending players to the NBA after their freshman seasons. In fact, that was what Karter mentioned during his announcement.

Still, the process turned out to be lengthy. Karter continually pushed back his decision to get a better idea on how he will fit in with his short list of choices. The waiting only intensified the interest, especially in the Tampa Bay area, where the Bulls are enjoying their best season in school history. 

There were other family ties to weigh with his college choices. 

USF became more enticing when Karter’s older brother, Kobe, transferred from Grand Canyon to become a Bull this offseason. Kobe currently is averaging 8.7 points and 3.0 rebounds per game for USF, which is ranked 24th nationally in the latest coaches and Associated Press polls and has already won the American Athletic Conference regular season title.

The Bulls, under first-year coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, made a heavy push to land Karter, who was named the Class 3A state player of the year by the Florida Dairy Farmers after leading the Crusaders to the state semifinals as a junior two seasons ago.

And Louisville was considered in large part because of one of Kevin’s assistant coaches with the Wildcats was Kenny Payne, now the head coach the Cardinals. 

In the end, it came down what school would be the best to reach the NBA — quickly — as a potential lottery pick, something Karter already saw with his older brother, Kevin, at Kentucky.