INTEL: This Week's Recruiting Roundup

It’s that time of year, football season is here, and college campuses are vibrant. That means it’s visit season! With the early signing period approaching, recruiting news and intel are rapidly being put out.

Let’s go through the news in this week’s recruiting roundup to share the intel we have recently distributed for uncommitted players.

Four-star SF Kaden Cooper

Full Article

Kaden Cooper spoke extensively about the style of play at Alabama. The Crimson Tide finished top ten in NCAA D-I in three-pointers attempted per game and top 15 in points scored per game.

LSU is making a push for the 6-foot-5 wing; head coach Matt McMahon has done a great job explaining their system and how they plan to play Cooper. Assistant Ronnie Hamilton has built a relationship. They will continue to battle.

The big question with Alabama is how would Cooper fit with the recent commitment of Davin Cosby and 2023 four-star recruit Mouhamed Dioubate. Sources tell On3 there is a clear path to being able to play them all together. When we discussed Cosby with the Atlanta (GA) The Skills Factory wing, he saw no problem with the fit.

The Gonzaga fire has dimmed some, Kansas took the commitment of two four-star perimeter players, and with Cooper off at boarding school the last couple of years, sources suggest the lure to playing at home in Oklahoma is not as strong.

A player’s recruitment is never over until the ink is dry on the LOI. Multiple programs listed are still fighting for Cooper; however, as things stand, Alabama has gained a lot of momentum over the last couple of weeks. With the intel gathered, when pressing ‘publish’ on this writing, Nate Oats looks to land his fourth commitment in the 2023 class.

Five-star C Flory Bidunga

Full Article

Flory Bidunga’s process had just started, but even with no official visits, a lot of momentum is pointing toward Cincinnati.

The top five player in the 2024 class us a physical force and a great fit in Wes Miller’s pressing and up-and-down system.

The familiarity Bidunga has with Drew Adams was the final piece to this one.

Four-star SF Cody Williams

Full Article

Cody Williams has maintained that he wants to play fast at the next level. In Tommy Lloyd’s first season at Arizona, the Wildcats averaged 84.0 points per game, ranking third in D-I. Arizona made it a point to make Williams a priority; they have seen him multiple times since the Fall live recruiting period opened, including sending Lloyd to Gilbert (AZ) Perry High on the first day.

Williams grew up close to the Arizona campus, and even if they were late to offer, Williams knows about the program. The staff did a good job of making up for the lost time.

Southern California is in the mix to get multiple other guys soon. LSU put their best foot forward, but they were always playing from behind with the local program. Loyola-Marymount gave it a puncher’s chance.

Williams’ last visit was to Arizona, and he recently moved that date forward a week to this weekend. His trip to Tuscon is the last visit he has scheduled.

As things stand, this one is looking like a one-team race, Arizona, with the other schools still pushing. With the intel gathered from around this recruitment, when pressing ‘publish’ on this article, Tommy Lloyd’s Wildcats are trending to land their second four-star in the 2023 class.

Four-star C Papa Kante

Full Article

Relationships and trust go a long with Papa Kante. The four-star told On3 that his trip home last month was the first time he had been back to Senegal in a couple of years. Each of the schools on his list has built a good relationship with Kante.

In speaking with Kante, Michigan head coach Juwan Howard has been very present for a long while. Kante told On3 in February that Howard was one of the only coaches, at one point, to make the trip to his high school to see Kante. Howard made that trip multiple times. The four-star also told On3 that Howard texted with Kante a lot after his games to talk about his performances; Michigan was probably recruiting him the hardest at that time.

Grant Billmeier built a great relationship over multiple years with Seton Hall and now Maryland. Andy Borman, now at Memphis, coached Kante in travel ball. Tim O’Toole with Pittsburgh has been around Kante through O’Toole’s son being a travel ball teammate with Kante. And Kante’s best friend, Gavin Griffiths, is going to Rutgers. They all have relationships.

However, Juwan Howard put in a lot of work with On3’s No. 32 ranked player, and the groundwork he laid early seems to have the Wolverines trending in the right direction.

As things stand, this one is looking like Michigan has been able to stand tall on top of this recruitment. There has been some fluidity involved with schools making pushes, and there might still be more of that to come. But with the intel gathered, when pressing ‘publish’ on this article, Juwan Howard’s Wolverines are trending to land this top-five center in the 2023 class.

More News

Three-star G Malik Presley down to 3 schools

Four-star SG Darren Harris down to 4 schools