Plenty of attention for R150 PG Sanders
Showtime Ballers is known in Florida for exciting point guard play. In recent years, the 17U Showtime Ballers team had the likes of Shane Larkin (2013 first round draft pick by the Atlanta Hawks) and Rashawn Powell (Memphis Tigers). For the past two years, Corey Sanders has been Showtime's floor general.
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Arguably the best class of 2015 point guard in the state of Florida, Sanders is having a very nice spring on the travel circuit. This past weekend at the Under Armour Invitational in Houston, Sanders guided his team to a 3-1 record, including a 20-point, seven steal performance against Carolina Wolves. That kind of effort has Rivals.com's No. 89-ranked player in high demand.
According to Sanders, DePaul, USC, Murray State, Auburn, Cincinnati and USF are recruiting him hardest, and he also lists offers from Marquette, UCF, Wake Forest and UNLV.
Like many recruits, during the season and while on unofficial visits, the four-star prospect spends a lot of time watching the schools that are recruiting him.
"I watch the coaches, how they interact with their players and their guards in particular, the system that they run," Sanders said. "I'm a student of the game,"
Known for his motor, athleticism and explosiveness, Sanders has been rounding out his game by improving his jump shot, recognizing whether to push tempo or not and improving his defense.
"Corey has come a long way on the offensive end," Showtime Ballers head coach Diana Neal said. "He is able to knock down the three more consistently now. This spring he has been playing phenomenally on both ends of the floor. It's just a matter of time before folks realize he is one of the top PGs in the country. Corey leaves everything on the floor and that's the reason for his success. He is very competitive and it shows."
Prior to the start of his junior season, Sanders transferred to IMG Academy and verbally committed to UCF. Before the school year was over, he transferred from IMG Academy to Kathleen High School and reopened his recruitment. Sanders talked about both of those decisions.
"My Godmother went to the hospital and needed a heart transplant," he said. "My family needed me, and I was missing my family, I just felt like I needed to come back home. I was solid on my commitment [to UCF], but my family felt I should wait, that I committed too soon. I still have one more year of high school and if my recruitment is closed no one could talk to me. I could still go to UCF."
One of Sanders' Showtime Ballers teammates is Rivals.com's No. 33 junior, Dwayne Bacon. For years the Sunshine State has buzzed that the two were a package deal.
"We always talk about it [going to the same school]," Sanders said. "But it has to be good for both of us. We don't want to go some place together and one of us isn't playing and one of us is, one of us is happy and one of us is not. So if everything works out, then yeah. I would love to play with him in college. We've played together so much, we know how each other plays.
One school that is recruiting both Sanders and Bacon is USF, and recently the two took an unofficial visit to Tampa to meet new head coach Orlando Antigua.
"It was a good visit and I like him," said Sanders who already held a USF offer from the previous coaching staff. "He told me that I was a priority to him and he was going to recruit me hard."
Russ Wood is a basketball recruiting analyst for Rivals.com and Inside the Gators. You can click here to follow him on Twitter..
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