Early Thanksgiving for Vandy after landing five-star Simisola Shittu
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Thanksgiving came a day early at Vanderbilt when five-star forward Simisola Shittu announced that he will play his college ball for the Commodores on Wednesday afternoon.
Shittu's pick means that Bryce Drew and his staff have doubled the number of five-star prospects to ever pick Vandy in just one year. Prior to this year, the Commodores had only ever landed one five-star prospect – John Jenkins in 2009 – during the Rivals.com era. Now Shittu joins homegrown five-star point guard Darius Garland and Rivals150 forward Aaron Nesmith in a class that ranks among the top 10 nationally.
The sell of playing with Garland was certainly part of the pitch.
“They just say they haven’t had many players of our caliber before and that we could change the program and the city in general,” Shittu told Rivals.com earlier this week.
However, it was more than just Garland that sold Shittu on Vanderbilt, says his coach at Vermont Academy, Alex Popp.
"Consistency and the unique pitch," said Popp. "Most programs were saying come here and be 'the next' and Vanderbilt’s message was for Simi to create his own path."
Create his own path Shittu did, and he'll give the Commodores a big-time scorer in the frontcourt who can post, handle the ball a bit and is getting better as a face-up scorer.
Shittu, who ran with the CIA Bounce during the summer, also has a true thirst for working and getting better that should serve him well in Nashville.
"I see him thriving in coach Drew’s system," said Popp. "They will take advantage of his versatility on both ends of the floor.
"Simi loves basketball. Most young ball players think they love hoops, but Simi proves that he loves basketball on a daily basis. He is the first guy in the gym and the last to leave. He is constantly watching film. His passion for his craft is unrivaled and that’s why I know he will be successful at the highest level."
The class of Shittu, Garland and Nesmith will move to No. 7 in the 2018 team recruiting rankings and there's still a possibility for Vanderbilt to make another move. It is a finalist along with Indiana and Kansas for five-star shooting guard Romeo Langford, and would have a top-five class with him.
