NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Pros and cons of Nimari Burnett’s finalists

Oregon Ducks

Pros

If Burnett wants to stay out west in Pac-12 land, he could play for Dana Altman and the Oregon Ducks. They’ll be in need of a lead guard as well with Payton Pritchard and Anthony Mathis leaving after this season. That leaves former JUCO guard Chris Duarte and freshman wing Addison Patterson on the perimeter, with Burnett possibly joining in to create a lethal set of guards in transition. With the frontcourt already set for future seasons, the five-star guard would be joining a possible preseason top-10 team for the 2020-21 season.

Cons

But not all former top-100 prospects who join Oregon succeeds. In the last few years, several players have transferred out of the program after lack of playing time among other unknown reasons. Just three players left the program alone this past Spring. I can say that Burnett won’t be one of them but the same could’ve been said about these and the other eventual transfers who ended up leaving.

Texas Tech Red Raiders

Pros

Chris Beard’s program already made history on the recruiting trail in the last class, landing the highest-rated prospect ever in Jahmi’us Ramsey. And that was before the Red Raiders went to the national title game for the first time as well. Now, five-stars have been linked to the basketball program like never before. With first-round NBA Draft picks Jarrett Culver and Zharie Smith as recent examples of players who can develop and succeed to the next level, Texas Tech has put themselves in a position to start landing five-star caliber talent.

Cons

The only real concern about Burnett going to Texas Tech is that he’s not guaranteed to start day 1. The trio of Ramsey, Moretti and Kyler Edwards have already looked great in the early stages of this season and could be the best overall perimeter in the Big 12. None of them are either seniors or clear-cut NBA Draft prospects, so there’s a real chance that all three returns for 2020-21. Burnett may have a higher ceiling than those guys but would that insert him directly into the starting lineup?

It’s an interesting recruiting battle for a player who seems bent on forging a unique path in the next levels of his basketball career. Alabama is viewed as the current favorite but I wouldn’t be surprised if he went to any of the four finalists. No matter were Nimari Burnett ends up, it’ll be a notable decision that’ll impact NCAA Basketball for sure.