The college basketball season is over, the coaching carousel has ground to a halt and the AAU circuits have kicked off. All of that can only mean one thing: It’s time to dive head-first into hoops recruiting coverage. Missouri’s entire coaching staff hit the recruiting trail during the April live period, checking out the Under Armour circuit in Kansas City and the EYBL in Atlanta two weekends ago. PowerMizzou was represented in Kansas City as well, and we will catch the EYBL in Indianapolis next weekend, where we should have the opportunity to catch up with the majority of Missouri’s top targets in the 2020 class.
While the bulk of the coaching staff’s recruiting efforts are focused on that class, there is still work to be done to round out the 2019 class. Plus, the coaching staff has started to hand out its first offers for the class of 2021(and even offered one 2022 prospect in Minnesota’s Prince Aligbe). Here is a breakdown the Tigers’ known targets in all three classes, organized somewhat in order of priority level.
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Class of 2019
Missouri signed two players back in the fall in guard Mario McKinney and forward Tray Jackson. Technically, with Jeremiah Tilmon and Jontay Porter having declared for the NBA Draft, the Tigers could have as many as four unused scholarships, but the strong expectation is that Tilmon will return to school for his junior season and one of the other scholarships will be given to redshirt freshman forward Parker Braun. That leaves two spots for the 2019 class, though it is very possible Cuonzo Martin could opt to keep one of those scholarships open for next year’s class by handing it to senior Ronnie Suggs. All that said, here are the two known prospects Missouri could still add before next season:
Brown took an official visit to Missouri back in October but ultimately committed to Texas A&M. However, following the departure of Aggies head coach Billy Kennedy, Brown re-opened his recruitment, and Missouri jumped back in the fray. Martin paid Brown a visit last week, as did coaches from Vanderbilt, Minnesota and Virginia Tech. Brown also took a visit to Penn State two weekends ago. Brown has never been very forthcoming about his recruitment, but he recently told VandySports.com that he hopes to finalize his decision by his high school graduation date later this month. With so many schools looking to add a piece late in the recruiting process (Brown also mentioned Nevada, Nebraska and Pittsburgh as other schools he has heard from), Missouri faces a lot of competition, but it appears the Tigers and Minnesota have been involved the longest. We should get a bit more clarity about Brown's recruitment when he releases his top four schools list this afternoon.
ESPN’s Jeff Borzello reported last week that Missouri is one of several schools that has reached out to Washington since he entered the transfer portal. The 6-foot-11 forward played sparingly as a freshman at Oregon State this past season, though the Missouri coaches did have a chance to see him in person, when the Tigers played the Beavers in the Paradise Jam in November. Washington had no points and just one rebound in seven minutes. On the year, he averaged 1.4 points and 1.4 rebounds per game. He’s clearly a work in progress, and he would have to sit out next season before having three remaining years of eligibility, so it seems unlikely the staff would take both him and Brown, but if they don’t add another high school prospect in the class, perhaps they take Washington as a substitute.
Class of 2020
As of this moment, center Reed Nikko is the only scholarship player slated to graduate following next season, but we expect Missouri to add at least three players in the 2020 class. Adding some size will be a priority; look for the Tigers to take on at least one, if not two, frontcourt players. Martin and his staff have been recruiting some of these prospects for well over a year now. Others just received offers in the past week. With another evaluation period coming up this weekend, don’t be surprised if a few more offers pop up in the coming weeks.
Christopher has been one of the top targets on Missouri’s wish list for a while now. The five-star guard has a natural connection to the Tigers, as his cousin Nicodemus Christopher has served as the strength coach for Martin’s teams at California and Missouri. Christopher took an official visit to campus during the fall. All that said, as schools on the west coast have ramped up their efforts to woo Christopher, Missouri’s chances have become increasingly slim. Arizona State hosted both Josh and his brother Caleb for official visits earlier in the year, and then Caleb committed to play for the Sun Devils. Christopher recently told Rivals’ Corey Evans that Arizona, Oregon and UCLA are also heavily pursuing him. Convincing Christopher to turn down those options and travel halfway across the country seems like a tall task for Martin.
Love has seen his stock steadily rise since Missouri extended him an offer more than a year ago. The St. Louis native averaged nearly 20 points per game during the first weekend of the EYBL circuit, and his recruitment has expanded beyond the Midwest, with the likes of Virginia, Texas and Florida having offered. Coaches from both Duke and North Carolina have been in contact with Love as well. In an interview with TheHoosier.com, Caleb’s father, Dennis, listed nine schools that are recruiting Love the hardest, including Missouri, so it appears Love has some work to do in narrowing down his decision. We would absolutely expect the Missouri coaches to keep the full-court press on Love until the bitter end, but level of competition and his sheer number of indicate that landing him will be unlikely.
Like Love, Fletcher, another St. Louis native, has attracted interest from several traditional powers since Missouri extended him an offer last year. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo has visited Fletcher on multiple occasions, and Fletcher has reportedly communicated with coaches from Duke, North Carolina and Kentucky. The long, athletic wing oozes potential, but how well he plays on the AAU circuit this summer could determine whether those schools extend him a committable offer. Missouri will hope they do not. Among the other schools that have offered Fletcher so far, which include Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas State and Purdue, we would give Missouri the edge. Fletcher doesn’t appear to be in any rush to make his decision, though, so things could always change.
A versatile, athletic wing from Michigan who can guard all five positions, the five-star Jackson figures to draw heavy attention from the two powers in his home state. But Missouri, led by assistant coach Cornell Mann, who has deep ties to the area, looks like it will make a heavy run at Jackson as well. Martin, Mann and fellow assistant Chris Hollender all watched Jackson’s AAU team, the Family, play during the first stop on the EYBL tour. Jackson has been tight-lipped about his recruiting process so far, but we should be able to get a better idea of where his interests lie this weekend. As Rivals analyst Eric Bossi recently wrote, Jackson will be able to “name the college program he plays for” by the time he’s ready to make a decision, so Missouri will have to beat out some big names, but if the Tigers can get Jackson on a visit, there’s a chance.
AAU teammates with Jackson, Johnson also had the eyes of the Missouri staff on him in Atlanta two weekends ago. He performed well, averaging 18.5 points per game as The Family went 4-0 on the weekend. Johnson hasn’t drawn interest from a ton of schools, but both Michigan and Michigan State have offered, so it could be a challenge for Missouri to lure him out of his home state. We haven’t yet gotten an opportunity to speak with Johnson, but the key aspect to monitor in his recruitment will likely be how high he is prioritized by the two home-state schools.
Bradford has had a whirlwind high school career, starting at CBC in St. Louis before transferring to Hillcrest Prep in Arizona, then spending some time in Oklahoma before returning to St. Louis and playing his junior year of high school at Mehlville. The big man has long been on Missouri’s radar, but he finally earned a scholarship offer from the Tiger staff after they watched him play with Mokan on the EYBL circuit two weekends ago. Missouri is one of seven high-major schools to offer Bradford so far. His game certainly could use some polish, but he has the type of size that Missouri needs, so don’t be surprised if the coaching staff makes him a priority from here onward.
The Trinity Catholic big man saw his stock rise significantly after the first EYBL session. Kalkbrenner entered the weekend with just three high-major offers but is now up to eight, including Missouri. Both Kalkbrenner and Bradford seem like natural fits for Missouri’s 2020 class in that they are home-state prospects who play positions of major need and the Tigers won’t have to fend off crazy competition to land them. The question now is who the Missouri staff likes more between the two of them, or whether the Tigers would take both.
The third big man to receive a Missouri offer last week, Hugley has seen his recruitment go national since the Atlanta EYBL tournament. Florida, Florida State, Iowa and Kansas State are among the schools that have extended the Ohio native an offer in the past 10 days. So far, Hugley has taken visits to Nebraska, Penn State and Pittsburgh, though with so many new offers coming his way, it will be interesting to catch up with him in Indianapolis and see if his approach to his recruitment has changed. Most telling might be which school among those that recently offered, if any, gets Hugley on campus for a visit first.
Moody has been a player on the national scene for a while now, as he played up on the 17U level for the Brad Beal Elite EYBL team last summer then played for Florida powerhouse Montverde Academy during the high school season. Arkansas had seemed a natural favorite to land the Little Rock native, but the firing of Mike Anderson could have changed that (though it’s worth noting that Moody was “re-offered” by new head coach Eric Musselman shortly after he accepted the job). There will be no shortage of other suitors for Moody, however. He currently lists 15 scholarship offers. The Missouri coaches will have plenty of opportunity to attend his AAU games, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if they decide to spend the majority of their time and energy on other prospects given the competition for Moody.
Suggs was one of, if not the, most impressive players at the UAA tournament in Kansas City. A solidly built 6-foot-4 point guard who showed impressive finishing ability and a rare passing knack (he’s also a high school quarterback), Suggs could very well end up in the top 10 of the class by the time his recruitment ends. Suggs has already taken an official visit to Gonzaga and has accrued 25 scholarship offers, so it appears the Tigers, who just started recruiting Suggs about a week ago, are probably a bit late to the party.
Miller is another recent offer who we hope to catch up with in Indianapolis. He has amassed 14 scholarship offers, including from Kansas, Florida and UCLA. On first glance, the Chicago native would appear to be similar to Suggs in that Missouri is entering the fray a bit late to try to make up ground against such strong competition.
Backups: In all likelihood, Missouri’s 2020 class will be made up of players listed above or those who have not yet received offers. However, there are a few other names in the class to at least monitor. Point guard Ty Berry, a Wichita native, received an offer back in August. Berry possesses impressive speed, but it appears the Missouri coaches aren’t convinced he’s a player who could arrive on campus and contribute quickly. Still, the staff will likely keep in touch with him in case his game develops quickly or it misses on the top guards on its list. Same goes for St. Louis native Luke Kasubke, a solid shooter who may lack the athleticism Missouri is looking for from its guards. Finally, the Tigers offered big man Eddie Lampkin a couple months ago but seem to have since backed off in their pursuits. Lampkin did not list Missouri among the schools recruiting him hardest in Kansas City.
Class of 2021
While it may seem like a long ways down the road, the Tiger staff has already begun handing out offers for its 2021 recruiting class. Keep in mind that players in this class aren’t yet allowed to be contacted directly by college coaches, so it’s a bit more difficult to gauge who will make them a priority a year from now. Of course, many more names will be added to this list in the next year.
Perhaps no player boosted his stock more at the first EYBL event than Chandler. In the 10 days since, the Memphis native has landed offers from Tennessee, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Florida State and Missouri, among others. Chandler is a pure point guard who could serve as an ideal replacement for Dru Smith at the position once Smith graduates. Chandler is running with Kansas City-based Mokan Elite during the AAU season, which perennially features Missouri recruits, so the Tiger staff should be well-represented at his games. There’s obviously still a long way to go in Chandler’s recruitment, so we won’t speculate on Missouri’s chances, but it’s always difficult to beat out the type of competition the Tigers will have to face to land Chandler.
One of the more unique players you’ll see on a basketball court, the 6-foot-11 Holmgren told PowerMizzou in Kansas City that he doesn’t even consider himself a forward. Rather, he characterized his game as that of a wing. He has shown why, demonstrating impressive mobility, ball-handling and, especially, three-point shooting so far on the UAA circuit. But even though he only weighs 190 pounds, he can still play defense in the post. So far this spring, he is averaging nearly six blocks per game. His recruitment is absolutely exploding now that college coaches are getting a look at him, with Missouri one of 10 high-major schools to offer so far. He will almost certainly wind up a five-star prospect in the class, but since the Tigers got involved early, give them at least an outside shot to get Holmgren to campus on a visit.
Hardy, who boasts an impressive all-around offensive game for a sophomore in high school, could end up one of the top players in the 2021 class when his recruitment is all said and done. Hardy plays on the same Vegas Elite EYBL team as Christopher, which at least means the Missouri staff should be well-represented at his games this summer. But unless the Tigers can actually land Christopher (and he doesn’t plan to leave campus after one year), we don’t think it’s especially likely the staff could lure Hardy to campus.
Brian Matthews
Matthews doesn’t yet have an offer from Missouri — or anyone, for that matter (at least that we know of). However, he tweeted that he took a visit to campus last weekend, so the coaching staff must have some level of interest. We are working to get ahold of Matthews to find out more about his recruitment.
