Dallas prep Ingram, who has lengthy list of schools, speaks with KU’s Self Monday
Harrison Ingram, a 6-foot-7, 205-pound junior small forward from St. Mark’s High School in Dallas, Texas, spoke with Kansas basketball coach Bill Self via video call Monday, Ingram told Stockrisers.com.
Ingram, who is ranked No. 13 in the recruiting Class of 2021 according to Rivals.com, is considering KU, Stanford, Oklahoma State, Louisville, North Carolina, Arkansas, Florida, TCU, Texas, Texas Tech, UCLA, Purdue, Baylor, Texas A&M, Michigan, Wake Forest and others.
During this recruiting dead period caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus restrictions, recruits such as Ingram cannot at this time make campus visits. Also, college coaches are not able to travel to see prospects in person.
Coaches can, however, speak with recruits on the phone or via teleconferencing. If social distancing rules continue to prohibit visits, coaches will be able to offer video visits to recruits in which videos of facilities, the campus and housing can be shown to the prospective players via Zoom.
Ingram averaged 19.5 points, 10.9 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game his junior season at St. Mark’s. He was named first-team all-area by the Dallas Morning News.
“A unique prospect with what many would describe as an ‘old man’ type of game, Ingram is one of the most intelligent kids in the country both on the court and off of it,” writes recruiting analyst Brian Snow of 247sports.com as quoted by SI.com.
“He has a 4.0 GPA and has a bright future in every aspect of life. On the court he is kind of a point forward who uses savvy, skill and intelligence to dominate games. Ingram can play on the ball or off of it, knows how to create space for himself by changing speeds, and is one of the better passers in the class. Also, despite not being a fantastic athlete, Ingram is a very solid rebounder, and competes on the defensive end. His elite IQ and skill make him one of the best prospects in the class, and someone who will exceed his physical tools as a player and producer,” Snow adds.
Garrett fourth best player in country?
Kansas combo guard Marcus Garrett has a shot at All-America honors in his senior season next year, according to John Gasaway of ESPN.com.
Garrett is ranked the No. 4 player in all of college basketball, according to Gasaway, who ranked the top 25 players for the 2020-21 season Monday.
“Your national defensive player of the year has a knack for blowing up whatever play the opposing offense thinks it’s about to execute,” writes Gasaway. “Indeed, you can make a case that Garrett is one of the best collegiate defensive players under 6-6 since Marcus Smart. Note additionally that the version of Garrett that showed up to drain six three-pointers and score 24 points against Oklahoma in February is arguably the best player in the country. In larger sample sizes, however, the junior is a career 58% shooter at the line who connects 28% of the time from beyond the arc.”
He was the only Jayhawk on the top 25 player list. West Virginia’s Oscar Tshiebwe was listed at No, 10 and Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham No. 17.
Etienne considers switching classes
Micawber Etienne, a 6-10, 220-pound junior forward from Suffield (Connecticut) Academy, who recently indicated he’d been offered a scholarship by Kansas, tells Zagsblog.com he is pondering a possible move to the recruiting Class of 2020.
He’s currently the No. 61-rated player in the recruiting Class of 2021 by Rivals.com.
“I’d say it’s 50-50,” Etienne told Zagsblog.com of reclassifying. “I just really want to see how my body is and how my game has developed.
“I was going to try and decide during AAU season if I was going to be going in the 2020 class or staying in the 2021 class,” Etienne added. “I really have to see how this virus plays out and see what I’m going to be doing in the summer. After that, I’ll figure out a timeline.”
The AAU season is in jeopardy because of COVID-19 coronavirus concerns. KU, by the way, is currently full for the Class of 2020 with 13 scholarship players on the 2020-21 roster.
Etienne is being recruited by KU, Louisville, Marquette, Illinois, Ohio State, UConn, Syracuse, Miami, Georgetown,. Texas A&M and others.
“Kansas, they’re a great school,” Etienne told Zagsblog.com. “They play in a great conference being in the Big 12 and they had a great season this past year, being ranked No. 1 in the country to end the year, being the favorites to win the NCAA Tournament.
“That’s really appealing to me because something I want to do is win the NCAA Tournament in college,” he added. “You can really see how they develop their players, for example, Joel Embiid. That’s just one great big man that’s come out of Kansas. They’ve had a lot of players that have done great work in the NBA which is something I’m really looking for.”
Auburn lands Thor
J.T. Thor, a 6-10 senior forward from Norcross (Georgia) High School, has committed to Auburn. Thor, who is ranked No. 56 in the recruiting Class of 2020 by Rivals.com, chose the Tigers over Oklahoma State and UCLA. At one point he had KU on his list.
Uncertain days lead to NBA Draft
The NBA Draft is scheduled for June 25, but coulld be moved to August because of the pandemic.
“There is a lot of uncertainty with the pre-draft process. It seems like it is changing daily,” KU sophomore Devon Dotson told ESPN Monday after putting his name in the 2020 Draft. “My responsibility is to stay in shape and approach every day with the same aggressive mentality.
“The situation with COVID-19 has definitely impacted everyone,” Dotson added. “I am doing my part by being responsible and practicing social distancing and sheltering in place. My thoughts and prayers continue to be with everyone during this difficult time especially the essential workers. It does make this process different and I understand that sports is secondary to the health and safety of all, but I am attempting to navigate this process as respectfully as possible and be ready for anything that happens.”
