Adidas Gauntlet Sunday: Christian Brown backs up five-star status
CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- During the final day of play at the Adidas Gauntlet stop outside of Atlanta things started off with five-star Christian Brown showing what he's capable of while unranked -- but gaining steam -- Brock Cunningham closed things down.
Recruitment: Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Kansas, LSU, Missouri, NC State, Tennessee, South Carolina and Wake Forest have offered.
His day: Brown is a wrecking ball attacking the basket. He’s one of the more explosive athletes in the 2019 class and can bully his way to the bucket. How well his jump shot comes along will determine his long term future.
Prediction: Frank Martin marked his territory this weekend, but there were a number of other head coaches watching Martin’s in-state target. The one that should cause the most concern is if Roy Williams of North Carolina, who watched him Sunday morning, offers. That could be the game changer.
Recruitment: Added offers from Texas and Utah in the past week to go along with previous offers from Houston, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.
His day: In arguably the most impressive showing of the weekend, Cunningham went for 34 points and 13 rebounds in a win over Game Elite. He connected on five of his nine attempts from three-point range, and two of them were from a few feet behind the arc.
Prediction: It’s going to be hard to beat Shaka Smart and the Texas Longhorns in this one.
Recruitment: Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Providence, Tennessee, UConn and Wake Forest have offered.
His day: Nickelberry is quickly gaining steam as one of the top shooters in the 2019 class. He knocked down three from beyond the arc on Sunday morning, including two to start the game, on his way to 14 points. He draws a lot of attention from defenses with his range.
Prediction: As long as the Tar Heels stay in this one, it’s hard to imagine him going anywhere else at this point.
Recruitment: Duke, Kentucky, Indiana, Kansas, Louisville and North Carolina are the main players in his recruitment.
His day: It wasn’t Langford’s most impressive showing in Sunday morning’s loss to Game Elite 2019. Langford would probably admit that. However, the No. 3 player in the 2018 class still managed to put up 22 points and hauled in 14 rebounds to go along with it. He’s an effortless scorer.
Prediction: Langford’s recruitment is still hard to peg at this point. Archie Miller’s new staff at Indiana is making him a priority, but their neighbors to the south, Kentucky and Louisville, along with the schools on Tobacco Road, Duke and North Carolina, all will make it difficult to keep him home. The safest prediction to make is that he’ll score in double figures immediately wherever he goes.
Recruitment: Marquette, Texas A&M, UConn, Virginia Tech, Rutgers and West Virginia are among those involved with Mathis.
His day: Mathis had one of the more impressive runs during the two open weekends of any prospect the country. He’s a physical specimen at 6-foot-6 as he’s an explosive athlete with great strength along with some skill. He finished up Sunday with 16 points in a close win over Juice All-Stars.
Prediction: Mathis’ list of offers right now will look a lot different by the end of July. Look for him to make his way well into double digits of high-major offers by the end of July.