Official visit preview: Texas hosts its top priorities this weekend
When football season arrives, it means basketball season isn’t too far behind. But it also means a key recruiting period for college coaches is beginning – official visits.
Already, the Longhorns have two 2018 commitments from Westlake (Austin) forward Brock Cunningham and Steele (Cibolo) wing Gerald Liddell. Texas wants to add to that, and the two it wants the most are currently on campus for official visits. Our preview:
THE VISITORS
The skinny – It wasn’t a surprise when more top programs entered the mix for Johnson as the summer AAU circuit ended, although you have to wonder what they were waiting on. Most notably, Kentucky jumped into the mix by getting Johnson on campus recently for an unofficial visit, and then immediately extending him an offer. Of course, any time Kentucky offers, there’s a real chance the Wildcats come away with the prospect, and they are strongly in the mix. However, it doesn’t sound like, at least right now, Kentucky was able to immediately establish itself as a favorite like it does for most five-star prospects it offers late in the process.
Before that, Florida State made a strong push to secure an official visit from Johnson (next weekend) and Maryland has remained firmly in the picture for a long time. NC State will now receive an official visit as well. Basically, this recruitment is turning into one of the biggest battles of the 2018 class, which isn’t all that surprising given how great Johnson was consistently during the AAU circuit.
Fortunately for the Longhorns, no program has recruited Johnson more often, more consistently, and with more attention than them. And no program was in better position heading into August. Yes, Texas long ago identified a top Virginia prospect it wanted, and has been recruiting him for years... again. Speaking of Virginia prospects Texas recruited for years, we’ve heard Texas freshman point guard Matt Coleman could play a huge role in this weekend’s official visit. The idea of playing alongside Coleman, someone Johnson knows and respects, is very appealing to the five-star prospect.
If Texas is going to win this battle, it needs to hit a home run this weekend and remind Johnson why he liked the Longhorns so much from the jump.
Prospect Breakdown – Johnson is arguably the most productive, vocal, and competitive prospect among the 2018 class. Everywhere he’s been, he’s performed – Nike EYBL (19.7 points per game, 8.1 rebounds, and 50.2 shooting percentage), NBPA Top 100 Camp, and he was reportedly the best player at the recent Nike Skills Academy in Los Angeles, California.
Johnson uses his strength, size, and skill to make an impact on the glass and defensively. Orangebloods saw him guard wing Cole Swider, one of the nation’s best shooters and scorers, around the perimeter one game and then follow that by guarding five-star big Jontay Porter in the paint the next contest. Offensively, he’s dynamite in the mid-range, and while three-point shooting isn’t a big part of his game yet, it will be in time (71.9 percent from the free throw line on 169 attempts, one of the top attempts numbers in the EYBL).
At the next level, Johnson projects to be an immediate impact player on both ends of the floor, and will quickly emerge as a team leader.
OB in-person look – 2016 EYBL session one in Brookyln (two games), 2017 EYBL session three in Atlanta (three games)
The skinny – Texas is receiving the first official visit from Hepa, who also took an unofficial visit to Austin earlier this summer. Per Rivals.com, Texas, Gonzaga, Washington and USC are the four standing out the most for the four-star forward, and Portland Basketball Club head coach Mike Plank told Orangebloods.com that Utah and Oklahoma are in the mix as well while programs like Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, NC State, Baylor, and other schools are trying to get in.
Right now, Hepa has only scheduled two official visits – Texas, and Gonzaga (next weekend). It’s fair to project those two as the two standing out the most, and Hepa, who wants to commit in October and sign during the early period in November, will sit down with his family and coaches to assess his recruitment following those two official visits. It’s possible, probably even likely, that he decides not to take any more official visits and works towards a decision.
The Longhorns have recruited Hepa as a key priority for a long time.
“It’s been good. I tell people all the time there’s no question in my mind, Kamaka’s mind, his family’s mind that Texas is all-in on him,” said Plank about the relationship between Hepa and Texas. “Some of these other schools that have recruited him that go dark for two weeks… no question marks with Texas. Coach (Darrin) Horn has been superb, I’d say, in his recruitment of Kamaka and his circle. Shaka has been really good, very consistent. He flew out here for two hours to watch Kamaka’s first game during the last AAU session in Salem, Oregon, which was big. All that goes noticed.”
Plank added more about Texas’s pursuit of Hepa, and you can read his full comments Inside the War Room.
“I think Texas in particular has… they haven’t missed a beat,” he said. “There have been moments with some other schools when they don’t hear from there. You just don’t know? You don’t know if they’re on vacation or losing interest or what. Texas has made it very clear what’s going on. When they left for Australia, they made it clear, ‘Hey we won’t be in contact much.”
Texas’s constant pursuit of Hepa has positioned it as the leader currently, although there’s still work to be done. A good official visit this weekend could put Texas firmly in the driver’s seat.
Prospect Breakdown – While some top prospects can look out for themselves and force the issue on offense, Hepa almost always makes the right basketball play. A highly-skilled forward, Hepa can facilitate offense as a passer, can put the ball on the floor, can work in the post area against smaller players, and can shoot the three (41.6 percent on 77 attempts during EYBL play).
With a natural feel for the game and a very high Hoops IQ, the Alaska native is one of the best bigs in the country, and a great fit as basketball moves more towards positonless play and smaller lineups.
OB in-person look – 2017 EYBL session three in Atlanta (two games), 2017 Las Vegas Fab 48 (two games)