NCAA Basketball: Where will four-star 2021 guard Tamar Bates end up?

Kansas Jayhawks

As the hometown option, the Jayhawks have a great opportunity to land the four-star guard Bates. They could use him as well, considering that Marcus Garrett is a senior, while five-star combo guard freshman Bryce Thompson could be around for only one season. As the most high-profile basketball program in the region, Kansas Basketball could very well seal the deal with Bates if they make a full-throated effort in the coming weeks.

As a four-star recruit rated in the top-120, Bates is certainly good enough to play for the Jayhawks but there also is a concern that a five-star ball-handler can come in either the 2021 or 2022 recruiting class to be the new star of the team. This is a high risk/high reward scenario for this prospect to consider but he may be good enough to overcome it.

Missouri Tigers

Even if the program hasn’t taken the hopeful leap under Coach Cuanzo Martin, he and his staff’s ability to recruit the top players in the region shouldn’t be underestimated. He’ll need to kick it into high gear in the 2021 class, considering that almost everyone in the projected rotation for next season is upperclassmen. That includes senior point guards Mark Smith and Drew Buggs.

The Tigers already have a combo guard commit in top-150 prospect Anton Brookshire. He and Bates would compete with each other but as soon as the sophomore years, could very well be the starting guards for Missouri Basketball. There will be plenty of available playing time with this option but possibly not as many wins. And if things don’t improve soon, Coach Martin may not be around long enough for Bates to finish his time with the Tigers.