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Robinson playing his way to five-star status

Mitchell Robinson
Mitchell Robinson
Rivals.com

One of the bigger stories of the spring has been the class of 2017's No. 33 ranked player, Mitchell Robinson. The near seven-footer has backed off of his early commitment to Texas A&M and he's taken his game to five-star level.

A product of Chalmette (La.) High, Robinson initially committed to Texas A&M prior to his junior season of high school. However, since opening things up during the month of April, he's taken off.

Playing in Nike's EYBL with Dallas based Pro Skills, he's been a shot blocking machine, showed improved offense and looked like a potential game changing defender and rebounder on the college level.

North Carolina and LSU are the first two to jump in feet first, but expect his recruitment to involve many big time programs.

IN HIS OWN WORDS...

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"I just wanted to look around. I wanted to open up my options and be sure that I was making the best choice.

"I've been preparing for this summer with hard work. I'm trying to build up my offense to the level of my defense.

"I think I fit most in pick-and-roll going to the basket and I can defend it. The most appealing thing about my game is my shot blocking and rebounding."

RIVALS' REACTION

We've always known that Robinson had the tools to be a high-level defender and rebounder thanks to his size, agility and quickness. However, how rapidly he's gone from potentially good on the defensive end to elite has been pretty surprising. He's the best shot blocker in 2017 and his instincts on the defensive end are impressive.

Though he's not Tim Duncan in the low post, Robinson isn't totally devoid of ability either. He's developing a nice little jump hook, has pretty good hands and is light on his feet around the rim.

Given that his primary recruiter at Texas A&M, Rick Stansbury, left to take a head coaching job at Western Kentucky. It's not a huge surprise to see him open things up.

WHAT'S NEXT?

Though North Carolina and LSU were quick to get involved and Texas A&M will surely be working to win Robinson back over, we expect his recruitment to get real crowded, real quick.

Robinson isn't a huge talker and isn't a self-promoter so it may take a little more time for the true competitors in the race for his services to announce themselves. However, all indications are that he should end up getting recruited at an elite level.

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