5-star Meleek Thomas breaks down his recruitment

Meleek Thomas is the No. 3 player in the recently updated 2025 On3 150. The 6-foot-3 guard averaged close to 25 points per game this season, leading his Pittsburgh (PA) Lincoln Park team to a Pennsylvania Class 4A state title.

“I’m a scoring machine,” Thomas told On3. “I can score from all three levels; I don’t really feel like I can be guarded. A lot of times, help steps up, and I’m a good passer too. I’m athletic, and I can handle the ball; shoot the heck out of it. I’ll play the point guard position, but I can also play the two.”

On3 caught up with Meleek Thomas at the recent USA Basketball Junior National Team minicamp to talk about his recruitment.

Thomas talks recruitment

“It’s early. I’ve been on visits to Villanova, Pittsburgh, and Indiana,” Thomas said. “I’m hearing a lot from Kansas State; it’s a lot of schools getting in the mix.”

Indiana: “The atmosphere is crazy there. It’s a basketball town. “Meleek, Meleek,” I went for the North Carolina game, and everyone was screaming my name. It was big, and it is all love with the fans.

Villanova: “It’s a hard-nosed program, and they recruit hard. I like what they teach; go get it on defense, and the offense will come. I just like what they’re preaching. They showed me around the campus, and I really like that a lot.”

Kansas State: “You see how far they’ve come. They’re big on recruiting; they recruit hard. I like the style of basketball they play; I can see myself in that system. They play the basketball I like, and I really like the coaching staff.”

Pittsburgh: “Heck of a year for them. They’ve been through a lot, ups and downs and transfers, but they all came together this year. Coach (Jeff) Capel showed it. They let me know home is always home and I will always be welcome. They recruit hard as well, and they come to see me when they can, so they stay in the mix.”

In Thomas’ words

“I wouldn’t say I was a fan, but I grew up watching a lot of Duke,” Thomas said. “I’m from Pittsburgh. I moved down to the North Carolina area for like three years and then moved right back to Pittsburgh.

“I’m going to look at the coaches who I know will hold me accountable and will coach me hard. I want to play for a coach who will look out for me while I’m there, not only as a basketball player. I’ll look at the system of each program, see how they have me fit in and how they want to play me; that will be big. But also, I’ll be looking closely at how they coach their players.”