Highly touted 2020 wing Ziaire Williams will make his college choice on Easter Sunday.
Consensus five- star 2020 wing Ziaire Williams will choose between his five finalists on April 12, he announced via twitter. The six schools that Williams is still considering are Arizona, USC, Stanford, North Carolina, and UCLA.
“I’m super excited to get this over with,” Williams told Josh Gershon of 247Sports.
Williams is an elite, versatile athlete with good size and decent length. He possesses a sweet shooting stroke and is a consistent shot-maker, whether shooting off the catch or dribble. The 6-7 forward also can get to the basket, thanks to a quick first step, and he is a capable finisher at the rim. Additionally, Williams is a strong rebounder, as well as a good shot-blocker.
The 18-year-old earned multiple honors this past season despite getting off to a late start as he was ineligible until Dec. 30 due to his transfer to Sierra Canyon High School. Williams took over during the playoffs pouring in 25 points in the Southern Section Open Division final against Santa Ana Mater Dei. Then in the Southern California regional final against Etiwanda. he made the winning shot as the buzzer sounded to give the Trailblazers a 63-61 victory after trailing late in the game. Overall, Williams averaged 15 points, 7.9 rebounds along with 3.6 assists in 21 appearances while leading the Trailblazers to a 30-4 record.
Williams is ranked as one of the best prospects in the nation by all four recruiting major recruiting services. He is ranked as the seventh-best prospect by ESPN and fifth by 247Sports Composite. Meanwhile, both Rivals and 247Sports have him rated No. 6 in their rankings.
Arizona, Stanford, and USC are considered the leaders for the Sherman Oaks (CA) native. UNC is considered a long shot, but the Tar Heels got back in the race following Brandon Huffman’s decision to transfer as it opened up a scholarship. Here is a look at each school of the three leading programs.
Arizona: Arizona has gone hard after Williams since entering the fray. The Wildcats have four scholarships remaining in 2020, and they could really use a prolific scorer like Williams. Plus, four-plus star Dalen Terry is the only other wing currently on the roster.
“He fits in well with what[ coach Sean] Miller is looking for, really every year, in a perimeter player considering he has the length and versatility to serve a variety of roles, “Matt Moreno of GoAZCATS told Rivals Eric Bossi. “The small forward position is one that has featured numerous future NBA players under Miller, and that is something the Wildcats have on their side as they look to add Williams.”
USC: Coach Andy Enfield has six members in the Trojans’ 2020 recruiting class, and all but big men Evan Mobley and Boubacar Coulibaly are transfers. USC has two more scholarships available to give out.
“So USC can offer him the opportunity to join a talented roster with fellow elite Southern California products he’s familiar with in the Mobleys but also a major opportunity to seize the spotlight,” Ryan Young of TrojansSports told Bossi. “Williams and the Mobley brothers have totally different games, and more specifically, USC has a major need for perimeter shooting, with 68.5-percent of the Trojans’ 3-point shooting leaving the roster. Williams’ recruitment has been hard to read at times, but he used his first official visit on USC and talked then about the comfort he felt with so many familiar faces on the roster and the advantage of staying close to home. So for those reasons and the wide-open opportunity to immediately become a focal point while being surrounded by fellow elite talent, it would make plenty of sense for Williams to become the latest 5-star addition to the Trojans.”
Stanford: Going into the week, the Cardinal did not have a scholarship to give out in 2020 though that changed with freshman point guard Tyrell Terry declared for the NBA Draft. While Terry could return to Palo Alto, it doesn’t seem likely that it will occur.
“Stanford identified Williams as a top target for the 2020 class long before any of the national superpowers jumped on board,” Jacob Rayburn of CardinalSportsReport told Bossi. “The staff, led by Jerod Haase and associate head coach Adam Cohen, have put in a tremendous amount of time and effort — including daily written letters — to convince Williams that The Farm is where he fits best.
Prediction: I believe that USC has a slight edge over Arizona. Therefore that puts Stanford third followed by UCLA and then UNC.