EMERSON, Ga. - The lone live period of July 2019 tipped off on Thursday. We spent time covering the Under Armour Association Finals at the LakePoint Champions Center and tracked which prospects the top college coaches were watching.
All eyes on Bryce Thompson
Bryce Thompson jumped into five-star range in the most recent rankings update with his play this travel season for Oklahoma Run PWP. His strong play also brought along increased attention from college programs, including offers from Kansas and North Carolina. Bill Self was in attendance for both of Thompson’s games on Thursday, while UNC had an assistant at each game. In-state head coaches Lon Kruger and Mike Boynton were also at Thompson’s first game of the day.
Grassroots Sizzle brings out top coaches
The Grassroots Sizzle have two of the biggest stars on the Under Armour circuit this year in Jalen Suggs and Chet Holmgren, and it certainly shows with the attendance of the college coaches. Minnesota head coach Richard Pitino made it in for their second game of the day and an assistant took in the first. UNC assistant Steve Robinson watched both games, and Virginia head coach Tony Bennett took in the first game. Baylor, Kansas State and Creighton also were spotted for the Minnesota-based team.
Academic powers line up for Rivals150 PF
There was a pretty common theme among the coaches in town to see Osasere Ighodaro on Thursday night: Top academic schools had coaches watching. Stanford head coach Jerod Haase and an assistant were spotted, as were assistants from Northwestern, Vanderbilt, UCLA, Butler, Oregon, Harvard, Princeton and several others.
Lon Kruger locks in Texas wing
Three-star shooting guard Hayden Hefner’s FutureCast is 100 percent for Oklahoma. Talk around the Under Armour Finals on Thursday has the Sooners in the lead, so it makes sense that Lon Kruger and an assistant were courtside for his games. The 6-foot-5 wing showed off his lethal 3-point stroke and pretty good athleticism in transition.
SEC coaches cover Team Thad
Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis and an assistant strategically positioned themselves right across from Team Thad’s bench in an evening game, as they have offers out to two of their stars in Matthew Murrell and Cameron Matthews. Auburn, Florida, Georgia and Vanderbilt also were seen watching Team Thad.
In-state school tracking Rongie Gordon
There was one school we noticed at both of Rongie Gordon’s games on Thursday: Auburn. The Tigers have offered the in-state Rivals150 power forward and many perceive them as the favorites. Gordon is bouncing back from an injury that has kept him out a few weeks, but he showed some flashes of why he added a few high-major offers this spring.
Georgia and Georgia Tech tracking in-state prospects
Both Georgia and Georgia Tech had an assistant watching the Atlanta Xpress 16s on Thursday morning. The likely beneficiary of the schools taking in the game is class of 2021 product Will Richard. He’s yet to receive any offers, but the 6-foot-5 shooting guard has had a really good travel season and should see his stock take off this year playing with five-star big man Walker Kessler at Woodward Academy. Tony Bennett also watched him play Thursday afternoon.
