McDonald's Nuggets: Commits of the week, visit to watch
In this week’s edition of McDonald’s Nuggets, Dan McDonald once again discusses the top five commitments in a busy week. He also addresses a visit that will be worth watching.
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MORE: Five players that will define Duke's transition to a new coach
Commitment breakdown: Jadon Schutt chooses Duke | Malik Reneau chooses Florida
2022 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position
2023 Rankings: Rivals150
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STARTING FIVE: Top five commitments this week
As the calendar turns to September, the commitments continue to roll in every single day this time of year. It was Mike White’s Florida Gators that won the week after landing Malik Reneau (1), the No. 24 overall prospect in the 2022 Rival150. The 6-foot-9 forward chose the Gators over Florida State, Memphis and Miami. Reneau brings a ton of skill to the table as a post player who can really pass for a big man. He’ll make an impact early in Gainesville.
Isaac Traudt (2) was one of the prospects this summer that drew the most head coaches to his games on the Under Armour circuit. This week, he ended his recruitment in favor of Virginia. The Nebraska native is a huge addition for the Cavaliers as he’s a 6-foot-9 forward with the ability to play both in the paint and out on the perimeter.
Jon Scheyer locked down a third commitment in what will be his first incoming class at Duke with Jaden Schutt (3) announcing in favor of the Blue Devils on Thursday night. The 6-foot-5 guard out of Illinois will be the ideal fit to create spacing for all the other elite players Duke will have around him as he’s one of the top shooters in the class.
It’s not often that Northwestern is able to reel in top 100 prospects, but the program did that earlier this week with the addition of Rowan Brumbaugh (4) to its 2022 class. The 6-foot-4 point guard spurned several other high-major offers in favor of Chris Collins and the Wildcats. He’ll bring great size, skill and versatility to the Northwestern backcourt.
Miami also landed a versatile wing prospect this week as Jim Larranaga went back up to his old stomping grounds in the DMV area to land three-star small forward Christian Watson (5). Georgetown and Marquette were also in the mix before the Hurricanes won out for Watson.
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VISIT TO WATCH: Austin Nunez to Arizona State
Four-star Austin Nunez has been a top target of Bobby Hurley’s for a while to be the point guard in his 2022 class. The Texas native visited the Sun Devils last month for an unofficial visit and goes back this weekend for his official visit. If all goes well this weekend, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see him end the weekend as a member of Arizona State’s 2022 class.
Nunez’s best trait is his quick release on his lethal lefty jump shot, but he’s also a really natural playmaker as well at the point guard position. Shaka Smart’s staff at Marquette, which started recruiting him at Texas a few years ago, could also have a shot here.