COLORADO SPRINGS -- Already owning several high major scholarship offers, class of 2020 point guard Nico Mannion showed up at USA Basketball's U16 National Team tryouts on a mission.
When the point guard from Arizona was last in Colorado Springs, it was October, 2016 for the annual Fall Minicamp. His first USA Basketball experience didn't go as smoothly as he had hoped. This time around, he's been prepared and has been one of the best shooters in attendance.
"I think a big part of it is the mindset I have this time," Mannion told Rivals.com. "In the fall I didn't know what to expect and I was pretty nervous about playing with all of the 2017 players because of their size and experience.
"I know all of the guys this time around and I'm confident in the way I'm playing."
Mannion already holds offers from Arizona, Arizona State, Cal State Northridge, Grand Canyon, Marquette, St. Mary's, Stanford, Tulane, UCLA, Utah and others. As confident as he is in his ability, the slew of offers has been a pleasant surprise.
"My first offer actually came in eighth grade and it was from Cal State Northridge," said Mannion. "It surprised me and I'll always remember it because it came from somebody like Reggie Theus and it was awesome to talk to somebody who had been an NBA point guard.
"Overall it's been kind of a surprise that I've gotten this many offers from the bigger schools, but it makes me want to work even harder."
In addition to multiple offers, Mannion has emerged as a bit of a sensation on social media and he's already one of the more debated players in the country. He's not feeling any pressure, but Mannion does want to play well each time and show people that he's one of the best in his class whenever he takes the floor.
"I don't feel any pressure," said Mannion. "Whenever I play I want to play my best because I know there will be somebody out there who hasn't ever seen me before and I won't get another chance to make a first impression. But I'm really playing for myself and just trying to be as good as I can."
