Stewart sees interest pick up after tranfer to La Lumiere
Making the move to La Lumiere for his junior year, Isaiah Stewart has seen his college recruitment expand from a regionally based prospect, to a nationally, prioritized big man. A Rivals150 junior and high end four-star prospect, Stewart boasts his fair share of college suitors as a number of well-respected programs have already made the New Yorker a priority.
Settling into his new digs at La Lumiere, the high school basketball program that won the Dick’s Sporting Goods High School Nationals last spring, Stewart is expected to become the go-to interior weapon for the Lakers.
“Syracuse, Notre Dame and Maryland are on me really hard,” he said. “So is Texas, Purdue, Indiana, Villanova, Kansas, Georgetown, Xavier and Marquette, I can’t forget about them. They’re one of the first schools to come up here and see me; Florida State as well.”
MORE: Class of 2019 Rivals150 | Predictions for 2018's top uncommitted prospects
IN HIS OWN WORDS
Syracuse: “It is a great place. Coach (Jim) Boeheim is a great coach and has great history behind him. We were talking and he just said that I am their main priority for 2019 and that he will get me to the next level by helping me develop my game to get it to where it should be.”
Notre Dame: “It is a good school with great coaches. My guy is coach (Ryan) Ayers, I was there two weeks ago, and I got to play pick-up with the guys, and they have a City Rocks guy on the team that I am really cool with. I was just chilling with the players, I went to the football game and it was just a crazy atmosphere. It is a great school and they told me that I am their type of guy that they want for their 2019 class.”
Maryland: “Coach (Kevin) Broadus is my boy. He is really funny. He texts me every day and gives me a call twice every week. We even talked about the two commits that they got and he just told me that they still want and need me for the 2019 class. Maryland is just a really good school.”
Villanova: “It is a good school. I was talking to the coaches and they kind of compared me to Omari Spellman. It sounds like my game really fits their program and that they need a guy like me to come in during that 2019 class and impact their program right away.”
Purdue: “I like the job that they did with their big men and what they did with Caleb Swanigan while he was there. I like how he fit into their program and as soon as I came here, I wanted to get to know more about Purdue and we have been talking ever since.”
Texas: “My man, coach (Shaka) Smart, that is another funny person. He is very energetic. I talked to all the coaches on the staff and Coach Smart will FaceTime me out of nowhere, just working out, we will talk, he will call me, text me and the rest of the coaching staff, we all talk a lot. It is great.”
Marquette: “Coach Stan Johnson, he really wants me for that class. He told me that I am their No. 1 guy in the 2019 class. He is a great dude. We met and talked and went over their program and said that I would really fit in well over there; that I could come in and keep working with me and get me to the next level that everyone else wants to be.”
WHAT'S NEXT?
Stewart has been unable to make many visits this fall due to his new living arrangements at La Lumiere. He and a few of his teammates did take in a Notre Dame football game in September, though no other visits are scheduled.
RIVALS' REACTION
Stewart is one of the top big man prospects in the 2019 class. A 6-foot-8 power forward with a 7-foot-3 wingspan, the four-star recruit is not short on upside, production and he has a hard-playing motor. The recruitment of Stewart is just heating up as a number of highly acclaimed power conference programs are becoming involved by the day.