Eubanks opens up about final four

With his recruitment reaching the final stages, shooting guard Kobie Eubanks spoke to Rivals.com about his upcoming visits, whether or not he and his brother Nick Eubanks are a package deal and more.

A four-star shooting guard, Eubanks originally signed with Baylor last spring but didn't qualify academically. He then reclassified to 2015 and enrolled at Elev8 Sports Institute (Delray Beach, Fla.) where he averaged 26 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals per contest, according to Elev8 head coach Chad Myers.

For several years players have prepared for the NBA Combine by coming to Elev8 Sports Institute to work out with basketball skill coach Ganon Baker.

"I haven't been doing much lately but school work and working out with the pro guys," Eubanks said. "Chris Jones from Louisville, guard from Marquette (Matt Carlino), guys from UMass, FIU and Mike Qualls from Arkansas."

Eubanks will visit Kansas this weekend, then he'll head to Alabama for a visit May 19-21. West Virginia will get his final visit, but a date has not been set yet. He has already taken visits to Oregon and Texas but with the coaching change in Austin, Eubanks is no longer considering the Longhorns. He does have two of their Big 12 rivals on his list - Kansas and West Virginia.

"Right now it seems like Kansas is in definite need for a shooter," Eubanks said. "With the returning guys that they have one of them is coming off of surgery (Brannen Greene). They already have a good team there. I would be like the missing link and help them make it back to the tournament and going further.

"Coach (Bill) Self is a cool guy, I've talked to him a little bit about what he needed. He's seen my game and he liked what he has seen. The assistant coaches are phenomenal, the conversations are going great, those guys joke around and stuff like that but we also talk about business and getting things done like taking care of my work and working on the basketball court."

While a coaching change may have led Eubanks to exclude Texas from his final four, it was a coaching change at Alabama that put the Crimson Tide squarely in the mix. First Alabama hired former NBA head coach and player Avery Johnson. Then Johnson hired Bob Simon away from Providence to join his staff. Simon and Eubanks already had a relationship so his arrival at the Capstone captured Eubanks' attention.

"He's (Simon) been recruiting me very hard," said Eubanks. "He tells me they have a desperate need for a scorer. The kind of guy that can come in to the team and be a leader. He texts me and he calls, and we have conversations about more than basketball. Sometimes we just talk about life in general."

Johnson also left a big impression on Eubanks after his first conversation.

"It came out of nowhere," he said. "I wasn't expecting it. Then when it happened it was a great feeling. Me and coach Avery just connected right off the bat. He talked about how he sees me coming in and having an impact on his program. He talked about developing me to becoming a better player and going on to the next level.

"Coach Johnson told me, he wants to use a lot of different styles of play. He wants to use the Spurs' offense a little bit, the triangle offense a little bit; he wants to mix it up. He wants guys to run hard, run the floor, he doesn't want anyone to run with us. He wants guys who work really hard on defense. It may not all happen in the first year but it will happen. There will be a lot to do but I think with his motivation and drive toward it, he can push the players to step up to the plate and accept the challenge."

Due to scheduling conflicts, Eubanks has not yet scheduled a visit to West Virginia, but he is in regular contact with coach Bob Huggins.

"He texts me and we laugh and joke around, we also talk it up," Eubanks said. "Our conversations and stuff like that are good. We're real close (to setting a visit date). We're just trying to make sure I'm not doing something and they're not involved with anything on that date. So that's all we're looking at, seeing what dates are open. I'm looking forward to all my visits."

There has been much speculation about Kobie and younger brother Nick being a package deal. The younger Eubanks is a 6-foot-6, 215-pound tight end in the class of 2016. While package deals of players in different classes aren't common, they're even less common when the two student-athletes participate in different sports. Nonetheless, Eubanks kept his answer simple when asked if he and Nick definitely want to go to the same school.

"Yes," he said.

But have each of his final four schools -- Oregon, Kansas, Alabama and West Virginia - offered his brother?

"I know Alabama has," Eubanks said. "West Virginia, I'm not sure. Oregon, yes. Kansas, not yet. He's still a junior. He'll be a senior next year and I'm pretty sure by next year he'll have those offers. I'm not worried about it. I know what my brother is capable of and what he can do. Those schools offering him will happen in no time."

What he described as the "fourth quarter" - his decision getting closer - the 6-foot-5, 215-pound shooting guard summarized how he progressed.

"It's been some ups and downs and some frustration, but the process has been great," Eubanks said. "You learn a lot of different things and it helps build character, too, and also patience. I got a little bit wiser too, because you get to see who wants and who really needs you. That plays a big part in my decision."

Russ Wood is a contributing national basketball recruiting analyst for Rivals.com. You can click here to follow him on Twitter.