Five-star Class of 2026 guard Caleb Holt updates recruitment
By ZACH SMART
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — It doesn’t take an accomplished, highly decorated, or veteran psychologist to have Caleb Holt all figured out.
The Class of 2026 Grayson (GA) guard absolutely detests losing. Always has. Always will. Fueled by an insatiable thirst for competition, Holt takes a loss as tough as any player in the country.
His obsession with winning began at an early age. It grew rapidly this summer, when the Alabama native invested countless hours into refining his shooting touch and developing into a knockdown shooter.
Holt, a five-star recruit, boasts a game predicated on getting downhill. He realized, however, that even as a 6-foot-5 bigger built guard, a consistent outside stroke and deadly, poised free throw shooting was a prerequisite for survival at the upper major Division-I level.
His sheer distaste for losing and admitted addiction to winning hasn’t waned much at all. In between launching a fusillade of shots and playing for Team USA, Holt transformed his game with a crafty lane navigation skill set, a penchant for evoking space-creation for his mid range game, and the addition of a floater.
One of his more memorable performances for Team USA was an 18-point showing, on the strength of 6-for-8 from the floor, in a win over Guinea back in July. Holt soared above the rim and finished lobs, beat defenders on hard surges to the rim, stuck corner 3-pointers, and hit one fall-away jumper from mid-range.
While he’s wired to score given the pace he plays at and his versatile and ball-dominant style, Holt has shown he can operate offense as a traditional play-creator as well. He’s able to spray the ball to open shooters, feed the post, and deliver darts with either hand on the run or in the half-court set. He’s turned in multiple games of six assists or more this season.
“Everything about my game really just emphasizes winning,” Holt said during the Hoophall Classic at Springfield College on Saturday. “I’m more of a downhill player, a big guard. I’ve really been working every day with my shooting, developing the confidence that’s necessary to shoot it and be a big time shot-maker.”
A vast array of high-end programs are beginning to take notice.
“I’m hearing from Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Houston, Baylor, Kansas, Kentucky, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Louisville, and several others,” said Holt. “I’m probably going to hold off on visits until after the season. I’m definitely impressed with the options.”
Holt broke down some of those options during an interview with ZAGSBLOG on Saturday night.
Baylor: “They do a heck of a job with guards over there, that’s definitely an impressive aspect of the program. I speak a lot with (assistant) coach (Tweety) Carter and they really have a lot to sell with the way they develop players and the success they’ve had. V.J. Edgecombe, he’s having an outstanding year over there. They’ve got great leadership with Jeremy Roach. They want to give me the opportunity to come in and play my game and I feel like I can adjust and adapt to their system. I feel I can fit with any system in the country, really.”
Auburn: “Coach BP (Bruce Pearl) has a team that is No.1 in the country right now. He gives his guards the freedom to play their game. I obviously value winning over everything, so it’s a great sign to see them winning like they have been. Coach (Ira) Bowman, I speak with him a lot. He’s got a lot to tell me and is really emphasizing how Auburn is the place to be. The fan base, how they bring it on a da- to-day basis, that’s also cool to see. The vibes there are good.”
Georgia: “I speak with Coach (Antonio Reynolds) Dean, he’s got me really understanding how badly they want to win and how it matches my mentality of wanting to win everything and beat everyone. I think my style of play really fits them in a lot of ways on the court. I’ve been watching Georgia for a while now, as you saw they just took Auburn to the wire (in a 70-68 loss).”
In a November interview with Travis Branham of 247Sports, Holt also broke down several other schools:
Arkansas: “They came to my school like three times, they haven’t offered me officially but I have been talking to them all the time.”
Kentucky: “I talk to Jason [Hart] a lot like every week so the relationship we have is great. Sometimes it’s about basketball and sometimes it’s about whatever I am doing in that moment. Me and my dad will be talking to coach Jason or sometimes it’s my dad talking. He just be seeing what I am doing and I am seeing what he’s doing. We’re both basketball-heads so we talk about basketball and the games that’s going on and their game. They have been winning some big games lately. Coach Mark Pope came to my school to talk to me, we got on a Zoom call and he wants me, he thinks I am a guy he can see at Kentucky, a guy that can win a National Championship.”
Louisville: “I am hearing from them but not like every day. I have been hearing from them like once a week. They have been recruiting me and they have been telling me they are coming hard at me.”
Ole Miss: “Coach [Wes] Flanigan has been recruiting me. Me and him have a great relationship.”
Photo: @Gwinnettdaily
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