Nazr Mohammed’s son won’t be coming to UK, but Sir’s writing his own basketball story

Sir Mohammed won’t be following in his father’s footsteps as a Kentucky men’s basketball player. That much is known.

The son of UK hoops legend Nazr Mohammed made his college commitment Saturday night in Atlanta as part of the Under Armour Next Elite 24 showcase event: Sir selected Notre Dame from a list of finalists that also included Marquette, Stanford, Villanova and Virginia Tech.

The younger Mohammed told the Herald-Leader on Thursday afternoon that “relationships” would be at the forefront of his college choice.

But that word can also describe Sir’s basketball journey to date, considering how his father helped him learn the details of the sport.

“We’re completely different players,” said Sir, who was a soccer player until the sixth grade, when he pivoted solely to basketball. “(Nazr taught me) the small details: Spacing, more just about energy and effort and having fun, that’s what he always preaches to me.”

Nazr Mohammed’s basketball story is well known, especially in Lexington and across the eight NBA organizations that he was part of.

A Kentucky Wildcat from 1995-98, Nazr is best remembered from his time on the 1996 and 1998 national championship teams.

On that 1998 squad, Nazr was the Cats’ leading rebounder (7.2 rebounds per game) and second-leading scorer (12.0 points per game), before being selected in the first round of the 1998 NBA Draft.

“I tell people all the time I think that’s the greatest college basketball team of all time,” Nazr said in 2021 of that 1996 championship team. “I mean, so many great players. We were such a good team. Well-coached.”

Between those college exploits and an 18-year NBA career that featured more than 1,000 games played, Nazr was more than deserving of his induction into the UK Athletics Hall of Fame in 2021.

All the while though, Nazr also had a strong impact on Sir’s burgeoning basketball career (Nazr retired from professional basketball when Sir was 11).

A 6-foot-6, 200-pound guard (measurements via 247Sports) who plays at Myers Park High School in Charlotte, North Carolina, Sir is ranked as a four-star prospect by the 247Sports Composite.

The Composite has him as the No. 53 overall player in the class of 2024.

“I’m a good playmaker, can do a little bit of everything. (I’m) best with the ball in my hand and just helping my teammates be better,” said Sir, who is currently four inches shorter and 50 pounds lighter than Nazr’s listed height and weight on his NBA profile.

Sir elaborated Thursday on the memories he has of his father’s playing career, and how they’ve helped boost his own basketball game.

In particular, Sir referenced getting to watch the Oklahoma City Thunder during Nazr’s time playing for the team during the 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2015-16 seasons.

Nazr is now the general manager of the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s NBA G League affiliate.

“Honestly, I’ve always loved basketball. (Since) my dad played I tried to push it away, but then it was inevitable and (I) just fell in love with it,” Sir said.

Additionally, Nazr has also been a resource for Sir when it comes to the recruiting process.

In August 2020, following the death of legendary Georgetown men’s basketball coach John Thompson, Nazr made a lengthy social media post that explained how he nearly committed to the Hoyas with Thompson as head coach before ultimately choosing Rick Pitino and Kentucky.

He has repeated that story to his son when providing guidance to him about his own recruiting process.

“(Nazr) said, ‘You’ll know,’” Sir said, adding that he never felt pressure from his family to do his recruitment a certain way or to pick a certain school.

“When you know, you know.”