So thought I would give another update with what I'm hearing in regards to all the basketball news expected to start tomorrow evening.
Last night, we finally learned from Devon Dotson and Eric Ayala themselves that they are expected to commit on Friday night and Saturday night, respectively.
Ayala was the first to tweet out that he is committing Saturday at 5pm (during the Terps football game) from his home state of Delaware.
Talking to a source close to Ayala a little earlier today, this one is done. Barring some unforeseen craziness, he will be a Terp by the time the Northwestern game ends. He loved his official visit to Maryland, his mom loves it there and he's been talking to Turgeon daily for a while now, I was told.
Dotson tweeted our shortly after Ayala that he was committing tomorrow at 6pm (apparently during his school's Homecoming) at his school.
This one has been much more difficult to predict and get info on in the last 24 to 48 hours. Dotson was nearly done to Florida before Mike White made quick work of getting commitments from five-star Canadian point guard Andrew Nembhard followed by Baltimore four-star sharp shooter Noah Locke. This left Dotson out in the cold and basically starting over. Maryland's Mark Turgeon and Kevin Broadus as well as Kansas' Bill Self and Norm Roberts both made final in-home pitches to the five-star point guard.
Info is pretty scarce on this one as Dotson and his father have pretty much shut things down. That said, in talking to a source this afternoon, I'm pretty confident that it is likely going to be Kansas for Dotson. While a commitment from Dotson would be huge, Ayala would at least give the Terps another ball handler which is much needed.
As for Keldon Johnson, after talking to several sources over the past day or so, it appears it is coming down to Kentucky and Maryland, with Johnson possibly leaning towards the Wildcats. One source indicated that they believe Keldon prefers Kentucky and Maryland in that order, while his father (and family) prefer Maryland and NC State in that order. Other sources have indicated that they are fairly certain NC State will not land Johnson while all of the talk of late has been that Shaka Smart is extremely nervous he won't land Keldon. If it is up to Keldon himself, it sounds as if he is headed to Kentucky. If it is more of a family decision, I think the Terps still have a shot. We will have to see what happens.
It does appear that the Terps are already working on a backup plan to Johnson should he wind up a Wildcat. Maryland is set to host Rivals150 Cannon (N.C.) four-star wing Jairus Hamilton this weekend.
Hamilton is a name that is likely familiar to Terp fans as Maryland showed interest in him two summers ago. TSR got a chance to watch him at the NBPA Top 100 camp that summer and he's an impressive physical specimen. He's big, with a college-ready body. He's an excellent run/jump athlete that can put his head down and plow his way through the lane and finish with a dunk. He's also improved his jump shot significantly. He had offers from Duke, UNC and Wake Forest and all three were said to be finalists for his services, but he seemed to be enjoying the process and in no hurry to commit. As such, the only North Carolina school that still appears to be in pursuit is NC State.
To have Hamilton possibly fall into their laps after possibly losing Keldon Johnson to Kentucky would be huge. He's a guy that could come in and have an instant impact on the wing. Hamilton has already taken a visit to Boston College and is scheduled to visit Mississippi St. next weekend.
Last night, we finally learned from Devon Dotson and Eric Ayala themselves that they are expected to commit on Friday night and Saturday night, respectively.
Ayala was the first to tweet out that he is committing Saturday at 5pm (during the Terps football game) from his home state of Delaware.
Talking to a source close to Ayala a little earlier today, this one is done. Barring some unforeseen craziness, he will be a Terp by the time the Northwestern game ends. He loved his official visit to Maryland, his mom loves it there and he's been talking to Turgeon daily for a while now, I was told.
Dotson tweeted our shortly after Ayala that he was committing tomorrow at 6pm (apparently during his school's Homecoming) at his school.
This one has been much more difficult to predict and get info on in the last 24 to 48 hours. Dotson was nearly done to Florida before Mike White made quick work of getting commitments from five-star Canadian point guard Andrew Nembhard followed by Baltimore four-star sharp shooter Noah Locke. This left Dotson out in the cold and basically starting over. Maryland's Mark Turgeon and Kevin Broadus as well as Kansas' Bill Self and Norm Roberts both made final in-home pitches to the five-star point guard.
Info is pretty scarce on this one as Dotson and his father have pretty much shut things down. That said, in talking to a source this afternoon, I'm pretty confident that it is likely going to be Kansas for Dotson. While a commitment from Dotson would be huge, Ayala would at least give the Terps another ball handler which is much needed.
As for Keldon Johnson, after talking to several sources over the past day or so, it appears it is coming down to Kentucky and Maryland, with Johnson possibly leaning towards the Wildcats. One source indicated that they believe Keldon prefers Kentucky and Maryland in that order, while his father (and family) prefer Maryland and NC State in that order. Other sources have indicated that they are fairly certain NC State will not land Johnson while all of the talk of late has been that Shaka Smart is extremely nervous he won't land Keldon. If it is up to Keldon himself, it sounds as if he is headed to Kentucky. If it is more of a family decision, I think the Terps still have a shot. We will have to see what happens.
It does appear that the Terps are already working on a backup plan to Johnson should he wind up a Wildcat. Maryland is set to host Rivals150 Cannon (N.C.) four-star wing Jairus Hamilton this weekend.
Hamilton is a name that is likely familiar to Terp fans as Maryland showed interest in him two summers ago. TSR got a chance to watch him at the NBPA Top 100 camp that summer and he's an impressive physical specimen. He's big, with a college-ready body. He's an excellent run/jump athlete that can put his head down and plow his way through the lane and finish with a dunk. He's also improved his jump shot significantly. He had offers from Duke, UNC and Wake Forest and all three were said to be finalists for his services, but he seemed to be enjoying the process and in no hurry to commit. As such, the only North Carolina school that still appears to be in pursuit is NC State.
To have Hamilton possibly fall into their laps after possibly losing Keldon Johnson to Kentucky would be huge. He's a guy that could come in and have an instant impact on the wing. Hamilton has already taken a visit to Boston College and is scheduled to visit Mississippi St. next weekend.
