NCAA Basketball: Analyzing Makur Maker 5 potential college options
Thought to have bypassed NCAA Basketball, Makur Maker may be having second thoughts. Which teams may be in the picture for the top prospect after all?
I thought I was done covering the 2020 NCAA Basketball recruiting class when it came to the top potential prospects. Once Joshua Christopher (Arizona State), Greg Brown (Texas) and Jalen Green (Pro) made their respective decisions, it looked as if all the five-star recruits were taken care of. However, there may be the inclusion of one more star prospect in Australian forward Makur Maker.
Before this past weekend, there has been literally no talk about the brother of NBA forward Thon Maker potentially playing in college. The most notable thing about Makur’s recruitment early on was taking a visit to HBCU Howard University. Every recruiting analyst had dubbed him as likely to go straight to the pros, with an official announcement from the camp months ago that he would be foregoing the college route.
Sources: Kentucky and UCLA are the favorites to land 5-star prospect Makur Maker if he doesn't stay in the 2020 NBA Draft and opts for college basketball next season.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) May 10, 2020
Also considering Memphis, Auburn, and Oregon.
Maker is unlikely to play in the G League next season.
However. a tweet from CBS Sports’ college hoops insider Jon Rothstein started a whirl spin of news, with Maker possibly reconsidering playing in college next season, rather than entering the NBA Draft this summer. A ton has gone on that could explain the turnaround, including the NBA Draft combine process being shut down by Covid-19 and overseas not being any kind of an option. There’s also the uncertainty of the G-League Select Team and which players may be part of it for the upcoming season.
Wonder if Makur saying he wants to go to college has anything to do with Kai Sotto to the G-League team. You definitely don’t want to compete for mins on this G-League team.
— Brad Cavallaro (@BradCav2) May 11, 2020
One thing is that Maker has plenty of options available to him. He’s a consensus five-star prospect with great offensive potential, able to score inside and outside. At 6’11 and nearly 240 pounds, Maker has the strength, shot-blocking and rebounding abilities to play the center position but also can play and defend the power forward spot as well.
Per Rothstein’s tweet, there seem to be five programs in the running to land Maker (sorry Howard). Expect there to be more contact between the camps in case the player opts to play in college for a season. Here’s a complete look at his potential fit for each program, including how they’ll prepare Maker to be a pro and where he can win the most at.