The college basketball season is coming to an end, as only four programs remain while the many others are already looking to find a way to cut down the nets next spring. Let's jump right into your #TwitterTuesday questions.
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Indiana hired Archie Miller last weekend, the former Dayton head coach and the younger brother of Arizona coach Sean Miller. Archie Miller is possibly the best head coach under 40 and brings intensity, smarts and an edge to the IU basketball program. The Hoosiers should come to love his presence at the helm.
Much has been said about Indiana’s lack of success within its own state. Yes, they have landed a few of the best local talents including Yogi Ferrell, Cody Zeller and James Blackmon, but in the 2017 class alone, former head coach Tom Crean and his staff struck out on the top four recruits in the state, Kris Wilkes, Malik Williams, Jaren Jackson and Paul Scruggs.
This brings us back to your question of Miller’s first and top priority recruit in the 2018 class. While Eric Hunter, Robert Phinisee and Musa Jallow, all top-150 prospects, would be fine additions to the program, Romeo Langford is and should be IU’s top target in the coming months. If the Hoosiers can land Langford, a top-five recruit nationally and the best in the Midwest, Miller will go a long way in laying down the foundation in Bloomington. Yes, IU remains a national entity, but by protecting their own home turf the commitment of Langford would calm concerns about getting the program back among the elite.
St. John’s hasn’t been talked about often on the recruiting front due in part to its absence of significant needs in the 2017 class. The program did part ways with Zach Brown, its lone 2017 pledge, and the class of 2018 is one that will be vital to its success moving ahead. The staff in Queens has laid down the proper groundwork with various local talent.
One name to keep an eye on is Luther Muhammad, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard out of Hudson Catholic High School in New Jersey. At the time being, the Red Storm should be seen as the favorite for the top-75 recruit; he would be a fantastic addition this summer.
Additionally, Naz Reid, a five-star center who will play with the same travel program as Muhammad, is someone where mutual interest is evident. Beating out potential blueblood programs could be the issue, though Chris Mullin and his staff have done fine work up until this point with the near 7-footer.
Others worth keeping tabs on include Louisiana native and top-15 point guard JaVonte Smart, 7-footer, top-10 recruit Moses Brown, 6-foot-6 wing Khalid Moore and top-100 small forwards Lou King, Isaiah Mucius and Sidney Wilson.
Missouri could be making a hard, late push for Kevin Knox, but while I hate to be the bearer of bad news, the possibility of Knox playing his potentially lone season of college hoops at Missouri is very, very minimal. Stranger things have happened in recent years, but given that Knox and Michael Porter play similar positions on the floor, I fail to see how each fit together, even with an empty cupboard of talent that newly named head coach Cuonzo Martin is walking into.
It does seem that Knox's commitment is not too far off. Now that the college basketball season is about over, the round of early NBA entry decisions are coming down the pike. Knox is looking at a final four of Kentucky, Duke, UNC and Florida State; each program is expected to lose some of its top frontcourt and wing talent. Furthermore, with holes becoming concrete within each program’s roster for next season, Knox can see where he might fit best and then come to a college decision. A commitment should occur during the late signing period that begins on April 12.
Seton Hall still needs to fill a backcourt spot for next year, even with incoming top-150 recruit Myles Cale headed their way. The graduation of Madison Jones, a transfer from Wake Forest, will sting some, so look for the Pirates to remain in the hunt in the next few weeks for someone that can both create for himself and others with the basketball in his hands.
Of course, Trevon Duval would be the perfect fit in the Seton Hall offense. The top lead guard in the nation is down to a final five, a group that involved the Pirates, though Duke has gained the most traction of late. Let’s say that Seton Hall misses on the five-star; where would they go from there? Well, Jordan Walker would be a tremendous pickup. While the plans are for the Patrick School standout to graduate this spring and then take a post-graduate year in the fall, Seton Hall should be seen as the favorite for him if he chooses to come out in 2017.
Seton Hall also wouldn’t mind picking up a post commitment in the near future. They have remained involved with Roberts Blumbergs, a European center that can play both inside and out, and North Carolina native Isaiah Whaley, a long-bodied big man that has his game headed in the right direction.
Mo Bamba, one of the remaining five-star recruits left on the board, should see his recruitment come to a conclusion sooner than later. A premier shot blocker with a near 8-foot wingspan, Bamba is a game changer on the defensive end of the floor which makes him a valuable asset as he slowly adds onto his offensive game.
On Monday, Rivals.com's Eric Bossi met up with Bamba in Chicago prior to this week’s McDonald’s All-American Game. Bamba is down to a final four of Michigan, Texas, Duke and Kentucky, and it would seem as if UK has the best shot at landing the 7-footer. He has a great rapport with mid-year enrollee Hamidou Diallo, while he also played with Quade Green, a 2017 Wildcats commit, with the PSA Cardinals last summer on the Nike circuit. Confidence level on my selection would be around a seven.
Duke and Texas remain in pursuit, as the Longhorns probably have the second-best chance at landing him. Jarrett Allen recently announced his desires to enter the NBA Draft following his freshman season this past year, giving the Longhorns an even greater sell with Bamba leading up to his spring commitment.
