Starting Five: Hunter Dickinson, Josh Hall and more

The recruitment of top 40 senior big man Hunter Dickinson continues to take one turn after another. Five-star Josh Hall is methodically working his way towards a decision and much more in this week's edition of Eric Bossi's Starting Five.

RIVALS ROUNDTABLE: 2020 team recruiting race

As time goes on, the recruitment of top 40 big man Hunter Dickinson continues to be one of the most rapidly changing in the class of 2020.

Each time I feel like Dickinson looks to be leaning in one direction, things change. At various times, Louisville, Notre Dame and Purdue have appeared to be in great shape. More recently, Juwan Howard and Michigan have come on while Leonard Hamilton's Florida State has started to make some waves as well.

Now, Mike Krzyzewski and Duke have thrown their hats into a ring with an offer and they met with the space-eating big man on Sunday. Dickinson hasn't yet set a visit to Durham, but I'd be willing to bet that one is set up sooner than later and the Blue Devils do feature Dickinson's summer teammate Jeremy Roach of Team Takeover on their commitment list.

As best as I can tell, I still see Michigan as a major contender on this one and perhaps even a favorite. But, if Dickinson ends up setting a visit with Duke after they get in this late, then it's not a big leap to think the Blue Devils will be tough to beat.

It's not a big move, and he still hasn't set up any visits, but five-star forward Josh Hall is down to a group of 12 that includes Alabama, Arkansas, DePaul, Florida State, Georgetown, Georgia, LSU, Louisville, NC State, Pitt, Texas and Western Kentucky.

I checked in with the slender scorer from North Carolina and he told me that all of the schools on his list are working with him to try and get him on campus either officially or unofficially. He also told me that he still intends to wait until the spring to make a decision.

While he is down to 12, Hall told me that his list could still be opened for the right program. Also, in the past I've expressed surprise that he's not had more blue blood involvement in his recruitment.

"I’m deciding in spring but I’m not waiting on any school but any school can get in, just has to be a fit," Hall told me Sunday night. "Because people think I'm waiting on UNC and Duke and I'm not.

"I'm just taking this slow right now."

Greg Gard and Wisconsin have been on a hot streak for the past week and a half. On Sunday night, they added their third and fourth commitments over that time span when class of 2021 Rivals150 prospects Matthew Mors and Chucky Hepburn decided to end things in favor of the Badgers.

Wisconsin fans are excited about the latest two additions and I feel there's good reason for it. Though Mors hasn't had a ton of national exposure, he is a guy that is a legit Big Ten player. He has toughness, he is bouncy at the rim, he can make some shots and I love his ability to catch in the high post and make plays through contact off the dribble or find open cutters. There's just an edge to him that I like.

Hepburn also has an edge about him that I like. He is a very capable playmaker and scorer at the point guard position and while his game isn't reliant upon athleticism, he's a sneaky athlete who can dial up some extra burst or levitation when needed. He's generally sound in all areas and he's easily one of the top 2021 point guards in the MIdwest.

Those two will join another Rivals150 prospect in big man Chris Hodges in a 2021 class that currently ranks No. 1 nationally at this early stage.

Taking a deeper dive, the efforts in 2021 are continued signs of a real surge in Wisconsin recruiting. After not landing a Rivals150 prospect in either 2018 or 2019, the Badgers have two in 2020 and now three in 2021 as Madison becomes more of a destination spot for high end Midwestern talent.

When he was hired to replace Chris Mullin at St. John's, I wrote that Mike Anderson would rebuild the program on his terms and that if the fanbase was patient with him he would build a winner. I still believe that and from what I can see he is doing it in classic Anderson style.

Over the weekend, Anderson grew his 2020 recruiting class to four by adding three-star shooting guard Dylan Wusu and three-star junior college big man Isaih Moore. Wusu is a tough, physical and driving guard who will help on the glass and who plays with the type of chip on his shoulder that has served players well under Anderson. Moore, is a long, athletic and skilled player who started off at the College of Charleston before making his way to junior college. He's an upside guy who can run and should be able to get from rim to rim in Anderson's fast paced style.

Both of those guys join players that they are already familiar with. Wusu is a summer and high school teammate of Rivals150 combo guard Posh Alexander while Vince Cole is a former summer teammate of Moore's. Collectively, the group currently ranks No. 19 in the 2020 team rankings and serves as a nice base to Anderson's first class in New York.

During July, I was at Under Armour's event in Atlanta when I ran across former Rivals150 guard and Missouri star Marcus Denmon. He told me to check out JJ Traynor as soon as I had a chance. I did, and I liked what I saw from the 6-foot-8 combo forward even if it was only a short viewing.

He's long, he has touch, he looks to be a late bloomer and his father Jason Osborne was a McDonald's All-American in 1993.

Things have really picked up for Traynor over the past few weeks and I've been getting a lot of calls on him. It looks like he's taking things into his own hands as well. Monday he'll see Xavier, he's supposed to see Cincinnati while in town and this weekend he'll take an official to Louisville, where his father played and where Traynor has been on campus already. He's also expected to see Kentucky during October and Western Kentucky has been steadily involved since giving him his first offer during the spring.

I won't be surprised if more programs try to make a play on him but I have to think that Cincy, Louisville and Western Kentucky are currently in the best position as things start to take off for him.