Indiana, Kentucky In Hot Pursuit of Kyrie Irving
Words. Devin Davis
This is why Indiana brought in Tom Crean a year ago. There’s a decent chance that Crean is on the brink of landing his biggest recruit ever at IU. Kyrie Irving a 6-foot-1, 175-lbs guard from St. Patrick of Elizabeth, NJ, Irving ranks in at the number four guard in the class of 2010 according to rivals. Indiana is definitely at the top of his list and a major possibility. Irving visited Indiana two weeks ago for an AAU event.
“It went really well,” Irving told ZAGSBLOG. “The fan support was tremendous. They really showed me a good time out there.”
All of those IU fans who think that 6-8 F Christian Watford, Crean’s most high-profile recruit from the ‘09 class is better than Irving should think again. St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.) coach Kevin Boyle is on record saying, “Kyrie Irving, when it’s all said and done, he will arguably be as good as any guard who’s played in New Jersey.”
Indiana assistant and St. Anthony graduate Roshown McLeod is making a great effort to recruit in the north Jersey area. Like Irving, McLeod was a monster prospect in high school. Plus, he was no stranger to crazy hype. His HS teammate Roderick Rhodes was considered the pre-eminent prospect in the nation. When he was a freshman, he played an instrumental role in taking the Friars to an undefeated record and a national championship.
McLeod went on to play some college ball at St. John’s and Duke, and was drafted in the first round of the ‘98 Draft by the Atlanta Hawks with the 20th overall pick. McLeod played in the NBA from 1999 to 2001.
Kyrie is definitely taking stock in what McLeod is saying: “He’s a factor, He’s not a big factor. I have a good relationship with him and he has a good relationship with my father.”
While Crean and McLeod do their best to lure Irving, Kentucky is also coming on strong. In fact, they may have a recruiting advantage in Kyrie’s godfather, Rod Strickland, a member of John Calipari’s staff. When asked if Strickland was a major factor Irving said, “Not really.” We’re not sure we believe that though.
Kyrie is looking to visit Duke, Notre Dame, Texas A&M and Virginia in the coming weeks. Kyrie spoke with Coach K before competing in the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions. Kyrie’s list consists of Georgia Tech, Duke, Indiana, Seton Hall, Texas A&M, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Florida, Marquette and Kentucky. He plans to cut his list down later in the summer and make a decision when it feels right. Kyrie is also competing in the Deron Williams and LeBron James Nike Skills Academy this summer.
If Irving commits to Indiana and believes in the rebuilding process that Tom Crean is doing, then it might be a great relationship for both. Indiana has a young team and Kyrie would definitely add depth, balance and athleticism to the backcourt. Kyrie would be competing with incoming freshman, Indiana’s “Mr. Basketball” Jordan Hulls, who isn’t a one-and-done kid. Irving would also improve his game by competing against Verdell Jones III, who is a strong point guard that can do a little of everything.
Source: Zagsblog
Looking forward to Kyrie’s decision. It will be a while off though.
Calipari is probably drooling over this kid, I think this kid would look good in the blue and white
SAW HIM AT THE NEW JERSEY CLASSIC THIS PLAYER HAS A BIG UPSIDE!!! KEEP BALLIN YOUNGMAN.
Very Good Point Guard. Kentucky Would Be His Best Decision.
[...] (Hargrave Military Academy) Javaughn Pinkston (Bishop Loughlin) Kyle Anderson (Paterson Catholic) Kyrie Irving (St. Patrick) Maurice Harkless (Forrest Hills) Mike Taylor (Boys & Girls) Myck Kabongo (St. [...]