NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Mikeal Brown-Jones has two local teams in final-5

2020 NCAA Basketball prospect Mikeal Brown-Jones re-opened his recruitment earlier this year and recently revealed his final five list. Brown-Jones also announced a few visits and his target decision date.

Consensus three-star 2020 Mikeal Brown-Jones, who is a former Penn State commit, revealed his final-five schools on Aug. 13. The North Philadelphia native included two hometown NCAA Basketball teams — Temple and St. Joe’s — among his list, which also had Virginia Commonwealth, New Mexico, and South Florida.

Brown-Jones has moved around during his high school career. The rising senior started his prep career at Roman Catholic in 2016 and then moved to Girard College for his sophomore year. Last year, Brown-Jones transferred to IMG Academy where he helped the Ascenders to a 31-1 record and the GEICO High School Nationals championship.

The long and athletic 6-7 forward can score inside as well as outside. He is a good rebounder, particularly on the offensive end, and projects as a strong wing defender.

While Brown-Jones is rated a three-star prospect by four major scouting services, 247Sports is the only one to rank him among the top players in the class. He is ranked as the 270th best player in the class by 247Sports and 287th by 247Sports Composite.

Brown-Jones committed to Penn State late last November but apparently had a change of heart this spring, de-committing in early April. He has set a trio of visit dates with a trip to VCU for Aug. 30, Temple (Sept. 6) and New Mexico (Sept. 21). He took an unofficial visit to South Florida earlier this summer and said that he hopes to arrange a visit to St. Joseph’s. Brown-Jones is expected to commit on Oct. 4, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

So, what is Brown-Jones looking for when making a decision?

"“I want to go somewhere where I can make an impact right away. My goal is to play in the NBA. That’s my dream.”"

Examing Brown-Jones’ final five teams

Temple: The Owls’ campus is five minutes from where Brown-Jones grew up. Temple does need to add a versatile forward or two that is capable of playing both the 3 and 4. The Owls have one 2020 commitment from wing Jalil White and made the final four of 2020 three-star forward Taj Thweatt. Coach Aaron McKie is a Philadelphia native who went on to play several years in the NBA.

St. Joseph’s: The Hawks give Brown-Jones another option that is close to home. Coach Billy Lange is in his first season as a head coach. Lange is very familiar with the Philadelphia basketball scene and served as the 76ers assistant since 2013. St. Joe’s needs a power forward and are expected to have four more scholarships available as they already have a commitment from two-star shooting guard Jordan Hall (Philadelphia). The Hawks are also looking at other forwards including four-star Matt Cross along with Samuel Mennenga (New Zealand) and Matt Zona (Oradell, NJ).

South Florida: Coach Brian Gregory is solid and the Bulls need to up their talent level overall. The Bulls are a young team as well.

New Mexico: Coach Paul Weir has had pretty good success so far in his young head coaching career, posting a 61-39 record which includes two winning seasons. He led New Mexico State to the NCAA Tournament in his first year as head coach. The Lobos definitely need help at power forward next year with Carlton Bragg Jr. and Corey Manigualt graduating after this season.

VCU: Coach Mike Rhoades has done a fantastic job at keeping the Rams’ recent tradition alive and well. Rhoades has guided VCU to a 43-23 overall record, which includes going 25-11 in the A-10 last year. He is 90-75 in five D-I campaigns. The Rams could afford to add more quality depth at both forward spots.

Prediction: Temple is the unquestioned leader as the Owls were a finalist in the first go around. St. Joe’s is likely a distant second followed by VCU. I don’t believe New Mexico has any chance at all and USF is probably slightly better than barely alive in the race.