Recruiting Spotlight: Which School Will Alex Poythress Choose?

UPDATE: Poythress to Kentucky.

Yesterday, Shaq Goodwin surprised some people when he chose to commit to Josh Pastner and the Memphis Tigers.

Now the question is, could Pastner surprisingly land Alex Poythress?

Poythress is expected to announce his college destination tomorrow, with many recruiting experts believing that the leaders in the clubhouse are Vanderbilt and Kentucky. But, Poythress himself has said it could be any of the four, with Memphis and Florida included the discussion. It seems more likely though that it’s down to the first three, as we just haven’t heard a whole lot about Florida in this whole deal.

There are plenty of interesting facets to Poythress’ decision.

In the case of Vanderbilt, it’s an hour from home, a superb academic school, and a basketball program on the rise. Kevin Stallings and company have been recruiting him for a long time now, and Poythress has talked about how he is close with the coaching staff. At Vandy, he would step on the floor right away and have the potential to be the star of the team, considering that the trio of John Jenkins, Jeffery Taylor, and Festus Ezeli is expected to be gone after this season due to graduation or the NBA Draft.

In the case of Kentucky, well, it’s Kentucky. We all know how well John Calipari recruits and we know about the talent that he brings in to Lexington. Who knows who the Wildcats will lose to the draft after this season, but there will probably be several players that declare early. Adding Poythress would be a nice addition to a 2012 class that will undoubtedly be loaded by the time the signing period is over. Plus, every highly recruited player has goals of playing in the NBA one day, and Kentucky is an NBA factory.

In the case of Memphis, they have the style. Not that the other two don’t play a similar style, but Poythress has indicated in the past that he wants to play in an uptempo offense, and there’s no doubt that that has likely been one of the pushing points for Pastner and his staff. He’s the kind of player that would fit in well with the roster that Memphis should have next year, and as with the other two, would be on track to potentially play in the league in the future.

So yeah, all three schools have a lot to offer him. If you think it’s hard for us to try and figure out where he’s gonna go, imagine the decision he’s had to make in sorting out the situation that is best for him.

Predictions are all over the place. Most lean towards Kentucky. And why wouldn’t they?

Given the track record of Calipari when it comes to recruiting, of course a whole lot of people out there are going to assume that he’ll be a Wildcat next season.

But again, let’s not underestimate the appeal of Vandy and Memphis in this particular case.

Stallings has been a recruiting machine in recent years, and boasts three first round draft picks on this year’s team. So he’s doing something right on the recruiting trails.

Certain people have called Memphis “Kentucky-lite” due to the Calipari connection, but make no mistake about it: Pastner is trying to create his own legacy. He’s got a loaded team this year, and is in the mix for a lot of great players in the 2012 class.

Every situation is different in recruiting. Every kid has a different outlook as to what he is looking for in a college. Some talented players want to go to a place that will make them an NBA player after one season. And believe it or not, some talented players actually are intrigued by top-level academic institutions that also offer excellent basketball programs.

One of these schools is going to land a great kid and a great player on Thursday. Who will it be? We’ll have to wait and see once he gives the official word.

But for now, let the speculation run wild.

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