McDs Spotlight: Thomas Bryant
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CHICAGO -- At No. 37 in the latest Rivals150, Thomas Bryant is currently the lowest ranked player in attendance at the McDonald's All-American game. There's a good chance, howeer, that will be changing soon enough for the powerful four-star post player.
A 6-foot-10 center out of Huntington (W.V.) Prep by way of Rochester, N.Y., Bryant made his presence felt on both ends of the floor during the East team's Monday morning practice. He played physically against five-star bigs Diamond Stone and Cheick Diallo, competed, rebounded, knocked down some shots and communicated with his teammates.
Once practice was over, Bryant spent time communicating with the media about the status of his recruitment which is down to Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri and Syracuse.
Because it is close to home and recently got hammered by the NCAA, Syracuse is in a tough spot. Bryant said that he's learned much of what is going on there from watching the news rather than speaking with their coaches. He does feel that he has a scholarship if he wants one though and looks at them more for how long they have been in touch than how recently they've talked to him.
"They are not going to let anymore scholarships in for 2015 if you haven't committed yet," said Bryant. "I heard that they told my mom I have a scholarship because they had two people go. As far as I know, I have a scholarship, that's what my mom told me.
"It's been a while since I talked to any of them."
Most recently, buzz has really fired up about the Hoosiers making a strong move in Bryant's recruitment. After taking a Fall official visit, Bryant was back in Bloomington in an unofficial capacity when the Hoosiers hosted Michigan State.
"I liked the Indiana visit," said Bryant. "Just seeing all of those guys, they all accepted me when I walked in. It's a great family atmosphere there and great fans that always come out and support it was really nice."
Bryant says that he doesn't plan to take any further visits and from the sounds of it he's near making a decision. If he doesn't decide during McDonald's festivities, he could announce later this week at the Dick's National Tournament.
"Me and my mom are talking about doing it at the national tournament," said Bryant. "If not maybe a little later on but that's something for me and my mom to talk about. It's a possibility.
"Sometimes I feel like I know exactly where I want to go. Then other times it's like, 'I like this school,' or, 'Nah, I love this school.' I just need to clear my mind and set my mind up for what I need from a program."
According to Bryant, he's watching each program very closely for signs of how their roster for the 2015-16 will ultimately shake out as he makes his final decision.
"I'm looking at everybody's statuses," said Bryant. "Who stays and goes whether it be Indiana, Kentucky, Syracuse or Missouri."
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