NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Precious Achiuwa schedules first two visits

2019 prospect Precious Achiuwa has planned two official college visits over the next couple of weeks. He will be heading to Kansas and North Carolina.

Five-star recruit Precious Achiuwa recently cut his college list to nine schools and now has scheduled a couple of official visits. According to Evan Daniels of 247 Sports, the 6-foot-9 forward will visit Kansas on Feb. 25 and North Carolina on March 9.

The Jayhawks have been recruiting Achiuwa since May 2017 with assistant Norm Roberts being the primary contact. Achiuwa told Rivals’ Eric Bossi last month, while he was participating in the Hoop Hall Classic (Springfield, Mass.) that he has been in constant contact with the Jayhawks for awhile. He is expected to take in Kansas’ game against Kansas State while on the Jayhawks’ campus.

Kansas head coach Bill Self, along with UNC boss Roy Williams, was at Monteverde (Fla.) Academy late in January to watch the consensus top-16 prospect. Achiuwa scored 22 points and grabbed12 rebounds in a win over Westminister Academy on that night.

Meanwhile, Achiuwa is slated to watch the Tar Heels take on Duke when he is on the Chapel Hill campus for his official visit. UNC is a little late to the party as they did not officially offer him a scholarship until this past Christmas.  However, Carolina assistant Hubert Davis reportedly has been keeping tabs on the Nigerian native for more than a year.

Achiuwa is one of the highest-rated uncommitted prospects. He is ranked sixth in the nation by 247 Sports and 13th by 247 Sports Composite. On the other hand, both ESPN and Rivals has the Bronx (N.Y.) resident ranked 16th in the country.

Achiuwa is physically and athletically gifted. As a result of his explosive leaping ability and a 7-foot-1 wingspan, Achiuwa can nearly touch the top of the backboard. He thrives playing above the rim, and while he is at his best in transition and slashing to the basket, Achiuwa can space the floor with his jumper that is solid mechanically. The 19-year-old also possesses solid handles and has a lot of upside on the defensive end with the ability to guard four positions.

The 2019 McDonald’s All-American selection does have a few weaknesses. He doesn’t finish well through contact and does need to work on his weak hand as a scorer an ball-handler.

Achiuwa is also considering  Connecticut, Memphis, Georgia, Western Kentucky, St. John’s, Florida State and UCLA. He is not expected to decide until April. Let’s take a look at each of the teams on his current list.