Starting Five: Top 40 Ramey won't sign early

Once committed to Louisville, top 40 point guard Courtney Ramey is planning to wait out the early signing period. Duke got on the board early with a top 25 player in 2019, Arkansas makes another 2018 move and more in this week's edition of the Starting Five.

The first signing period begins in just over a week and one player who I don't think is likely to be signing is top 40 point guard Courtney Ramey.

Previously committed to Louisville, Ramey has been busy entertaining coaches as one of the best playmakers that is left on the board from the class of 2018.

On Sunday, Oklahoma State's Mike Boynton and assistants conducted an in-home visit. Late last week, Jay Wright from Villanova was in to meet with Ramey and offer him a scholarship. Texas, Clemson and Purdue were also in last week with Villanova, Louisville, Wichita State, Gonzaga and Wisconsin all expected in this week. Missouri, Ohio State and Clemson are among the others that have been very active in his recruitment.

I checked in with Ramey's father, Terrell Ramey, and he confirmed to me that for now the plan is to wait until the spring to make a decision.

Things can always change and Ramey could make a decision during the winter, but he doesn't look to be in a rush. Look for his recruitment to be among the most intense of anybody in the senior class through the winter.

Sunday night, skilled combo forward Joey Baker became only the second top 25 player from the class of 2019 to make his college decision – the other is UCLA-bound LaMelo Ball – when he committed to Duke.

Holding commitments from top 10 prospects Cameron Reddish and Tre Jones in 2018, the Blue Devils were able to get a head start on 2019 by landing the in-state star. The Blue Devils are still waiting on some big decisions in 2018 – most notably that of No. 1 R.J. Barrett – but 2019 is going to be a very important class for them and Baker is a great way to kick things off.

Current No. 1 in 2019, Vernon Carey Jr. is another huge target from the junior class and he recently included the Blue Devils on his shortened list. They are going to be in the mix heavy for him. Other five-stars to watch in that 2019 class include skilled post player Armando Bacot and frontcourt scorer Matthew Hurt.

All along, 2018 looked like it would be an important cycle for Mike Anderson at Arkansas. Saturday night, he added a bruising and athletic big man in Reggie Chaney.

Chaney is the sixth member of the Razorbacks' 2018 class and the fifth who ranks inside the Rivals150. As a group, they give Arkansas the No. 9 class overall and it comes at a time when it needed an impact class.

Looking at the class, I think Anderson and his staff have put together the exact kind of group that they've had a lot of success with in the past. Yes, they lost the one guy who was likely to be an immediate difference maker in Reggie Perry, but to still put together a class this strong says a lot.

I like the athleticism, versatility and most of all the toughness of Chaney and another Texan in Jordan Phillips. Isaiah Joe gives Arkansas a dangerous jump shooter, Desi Sills can score and Keyshawn Embery is an athletic and tough driver who puts pressure on defenses. Throw in a raw athlete with upside in the frontcourt such as Ethan Henderson and you have a group that I believe is going to win a lot of ballgames.

I said during the summer that I couldn't remember the last time Anderson and his staff were so visible on the recruiting trail. That effort has paid off.

The group of Baylor, Marquette, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Texas that comprise 2019 point guard De'Vion Harmon's final five won't have to wait long to find out their fate.

Harmon will announce his decision this Friday at his high school.

In early October, Harmon told me that Oklahoma was his leader and that he had been on campus six or seven times. With his decision coming this quickly, it's hard not to like the Sooners on this one.

With a weekend visit to Kansas now complete, 2018's top-ranked shooting guard Romeo Langford has now finished his official visits. He's also seen his other finalists Indiana, North Carolina, UCLA and Vanderbilt, so the question is what's up next?

All along, Langford has said that he plans to wait until the spring to sign. However, it's looking more like he could end up signing early and he certainly has the information that he needs to make a choice.

A few weeks ago, I would have given the slight edge to Kansas in this recruitment, but now it seems that it could be swinging back in the direction of Indiana. His visit to Bloomington a few weekends ago seems to have done wonders for the Hoosiers' chances with Langford.

We'll have to see what type of word leaks out about his visit to Kansas and if that changes things. The other school that I'd watch out for most at this time is a tossup between Vanderbilt and North Carolina but at the moment I think he picks either the Hoosiers or Jayhawks.