Arizona Basketball Recruiting Update
Wilbur reminds us who’s #1 Credit: Chris Morrison-US PRESSWIRE
With most of the high schools around the country starting up their basketball seasons after Labor Day, let’s look back on the summer recruiting trail for Sean Miller. The Summer AAU circuit is the most vital time for college coaches to evaluate players, as they can attend the numerous tournaments around the country while their college players are doing their off-season workouts. Sean Miller and his UA recruiting team spent this summer going back and forth to different cities throughout the county to follow recruiting prospects. Let’s take a look at a few namesArizona fans should be aware of.
Class of 2013:
Keith Frazier– Plays for the Houston Hoops (AAU) and Dallas Kimball High School. He is a big shooting guard and is just that: a shooter. His silky smooth jump-shot is unstoppable at times and has been seen throughout his plays this summer. He averaged 17.4 points per game at the Peach Jam, scoring over 20 points in three of his five contests. He was in town for last year’s Red-Blue game and is expected to take an official visit to Arizona sometime this year. Here are some highlights from his high school season this past year.
Aaron Gordon– Plays for the Oakland Soldiers (AAU) and Archbishop Mitty High School. Aaron Gordon is a beast on the court and is regarded as the best high school player by many sports enthusiasts. He draws comparisons to Blake Griffin with his athleticism and overall PF skills. He led the Soldiers to a Peach Jam championship this summer averaging 13.5 points per game along with 7.5 rebounds per game after coming off a broken toe injury. This recruitment is considered to be between Arizona and Washington with the Huskies having a slight edge. Here’s a highlight tape for this superb player.
Rondaee Jefferson– Plays for Team Final (AAU) and Chester High School. Jefferson is a lanky SF with great athleticism and is a perfect fit for Sean Miller’s system. He is one of the best on-ball defenders in his class and always guards the opposing team’s best player. Here’s a link to a recent highlight tape of Rondaee this summer. Rondaee will be in Tucson this weekend for a visit.
Elliot Pitts (committed)- Plays for Bay Area Hoosiers (AAU) and De La Salle High School. Pitts gave the Arizonacoaching staff a nice little gift right before the Bahamas trip this summer when he committed to play for the Wildcats next season. He doesn’t do anything overly out of the gym, but plays within himself and is good at everything he does. Here’s a highlight tape for the new Wildcat commit.
Class of 2014:
Jahlil Okafor– Plays for Mac Irvin Fire (AAU) and Whitney Young High School. Jahlil is the number 1 rated center in his class and is an absolute monster in the paint. He looks like a man playing amongst men in this highlight video. If Arizona can land him, Sean Miller will be very happy and excited for what the future keeps bringing in.
Parker Jackson-Cartwright– Plays for Cali Summit (AAU) and Loyola High School. He is a smooth point guard who likes to find his teammates as shown by all the assists in this highlight video. He may only be 5′-7″, but he can see the floor very well and is a great ball-handler, two key points for a point guard.
Stanley Johnson– Plays for the Oakland Soldiers (AAU) and Mater Dei High School. At 6′-5″ this SF is a perfect size for his position and plays within his role. He can score at will by getting to the basket and stroke the long ball, he is also physical and likes to get boards. Here is a highlight tape from this summer. Sean Miller looks to keep the Oakland Soldiers pipeline growing with Johnson and Gordon. Soldier teammate Jabari Bird recently cancelled the rest of his visits after visiting Cal this weekend and announce Wednesday he will become a Cal Bear, making the Pac 12 that much stronger.
Sean Miller and his assistants put in a lot of work this summer, which will likely pay off as these highly sought out players start to commit. If only Sean Miller could recruit a kicker for our football team….