Twitter Tuesday: Michigan State, Reid Travis, Virginia, Saddiq Bey
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In this week's Twitter Tuesday, Rivals.com basketball recruiting analyst Corey Evans takes a deep look into the 2019 efforts from Virginia and Michigan State, discusses the latest on Stanford transfer Reid Travis and offers an update on Villanova’s targets.
Michigan State will welcome a five-man class this fall so the program doesn’t necessarily need to hit it out of the park in the 2019 class. The guys that the Spartans have zeroed in on, though, include Vernon Carey, Keion Brooks, Isaiah Stewart, Rocket Watts and Josiah James.
The Spartans hosted the top-ranked Carey in January for an official visit and while they had some momentum headed in their favor, Duke and Miami remain the two to beat in his recruitment.
Brooks and Stewart just released their final list of 10 programs with Michigan State making it for both. The Spartans may be facing an uphill battle for Brooks but they should be seen as a darkhorse for Stewart. Villanova, Notre Dame, Texas and Duke are heavily in the mix, too.
Watts and James are currently in Canada with the under-18 USA squad. Michigan State has done a great job of recruiting the top in-state talent with Watts being in that mold and the Spartans could place a heavier priority on him in the weeks ahead. James, the son of former MSU forward Kurt James, has caught the Spartans' eye.
Harlond Beverly is another to keep tabs on but with no one specifically favoring the Spartans as of yet, they should feel decent when it comes to Stewart and James.
We thought that the transfer market had come to a halt until two weeks ago when Reid Travis dropped a bombshell that he would be withdrawing his name from the 2018 NBA Draft and, instead of returning to Stanford, head elsewhere for his final year of college play.
A 6-foot-8 forward and the best immediately available transfer prospect of the spring, Travis has remained focused on two programs, Villanova and Kentucky. He will finish his coursework at Stanford over the next week or so before visiting each program.
Villanova would love to add the forward as he would immediately become the Wildcats’ go-to in the frontcourt and mask some of the holes left by the early departures of Mikal Bridges and Omari Spellman. Landing Travis could be difficult because Kentucky may have the slight edge.
UK has been heavily discussed this spring as a contender for a grad-transfer. Things didn’t pan out for the longest time until Travis’ transfer became public a few weeks back. Kentucky immediately became the favorite and nothing has indicted otherwise since then.
Virginia currently sits with the commitment of the 80th-ranked junior in America, Casey Morsell. The Cavaliers landed 2018 European big man Francisco Caffarro last month and while they could continue to pursue a host of other junior frontline prospects, their top priority is adding size and athleticism on the perimeter.
Five names to keep tabs are Josh Green, Jahmius Ramsey, Drake London, Josiah James and Patrick Williams.
Green and Ramsey, teammates at IMG Academy, remain pretty open still with their recruitments. Green isn't close to narrowing his list while Ramsey has seen his stock explode as he visited Louisville last week, a trip that left a strong impression on him.
London will take an unofficial visit to UVA in the coming days as the dual sport athlete could be the best bet of the five to ultimately commit to the Wahoos. The California native is a big-time football prospect, too, but Virginia’s early entry into the pursuit of the do-it-all wing could work in their favor in selecting Cavs basketball.
James is nowhere near a college decision, though he did cut his list to a final 12 with Virginia making the cut. He has been intrigued by his feet and the culture instilled in Charlottesville, though.
Williams has been hard to come by for recruiting news but the Cavs are in there along with a slew of other ACC powers, and Florida, as he would fit the versatile and long-bodied wing that Tony Bennett is chasing after this summer.
Jay Wright has battled through a few early departures in the past but nothing is like what he has gone through this offseason with the losses of Omari Spellman, Donta DiVincenzo, Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges. Each left with at least a year of college eligibility remaining and while they regrouped with the grad-transfer commitment of Joe Cremo and a solid three-man 2018 recruiting class, the Wildcats remain involved for at least one more addition for next year, a prospect that could be Saddiq Bey.
A 6-foot-5 wing, Bey originally signed with NC State in the fall. However, Bey and the Wolfpack went their separate ways and since then, Bey has visited Wake Forest, Vanderbilt and Boston College, though Georgetown remains a heavy presence, too.
Bey will take an official visit to Villanova this week, this being likely his last before he decides. The Hoyas are the major darkhorse here with Bey but if he does commit to the Wildcats, it would be a surprise for him to redshirt. Yes, they will be young next year but there is a need for someone in the ilk of Bey.
Bey is most valued for his versatility where he can play anywhere from the two through the four on the floor. Wright has become known for his position-less brand of basketball and with holes remaining in Villanova’s roster for next year, Bey would be expected to patch things up wherever he can. Then again, Villanova’s pursuit of Stanford grad-transfer Reid Travis this summer could change some things regarding Bey and a potential role on the Main Line.