[alingeParticipant]

Anyone post this article please, any help greatly appreciated

http://insider.espn.go.com/college-sports/recruiting/basketball/mens/story/_/id/9159750/predictions-which-college-andrew-wiggins-choose

[chris_wuzhereParticipant]

Andrew Wiggins predictions
RecruitingNation [ARCHIVE]

ESPN.com | April 11, 2013
Wednesday tips off the spring signing period (through May 15) for basketball recruiting, and there’s very little intrigue left among the elite prospects in the Class of 2013. In fact, only one ESPN 100 prospect remains undecided.

Of course, that one player — No. 1 overall recruit Andrew Wiggins (Thornhill, Ontario/Huntington Prep) — holds enough intrigue on his own.

Wiggins, who is down to Florida State, Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina, has been as hard to read as anyone in the 2013 class. Florida State offers a family connection; both of his parents attended FSU. Kentucky offers a track record of one-and-done success and a chance to win immediately with a loaded recruiting class.

Kansas and North Carolina, meanwhile, offer similar situations: national-caliber programs with long traditions of success, and strong incoming recruiting classes that are lacking only the kind of superstar Wiggins projects to be.

Wiggins is still wide open enough that a decision date hasn’t even been set. But that doesn’t mean we can’t attempt to read the tea leaves. So we’ve enlisted our RecruitingNation basketball experts to weigh in on how they think Wiggins’ recruitment will play out, including a prediction on which school he will ultimately choose.

Paul Abell/US PRESSWIRE
Landing Andrew Wiggins would be a huge coup for Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton.
Dave Telep: Believe me, it will be a nice moment when this thing ends. No more trips to Starbucks or Target that get sabotaged by the question: “Dave, so where’s Wiggins going?” Having spent some time with him and watching him last week at the McDonald’s All American Game, the only thing I’m positive I know is that I don’t know. He could decide in April. He could decide in May. One person of influence says it’s Kentucky for sure, and that makes me wonder. Another swears it’s either Kentucky or Kansas. But there’s also no way I’d rule out Florida State. The UNC part is the one I have the least feel for, but they’re the Tar Heels and they could use a star, so that makes sense as well. I keep coming back for some reason to Florida State. His mom and dad went there, and the family certainly has an affinity for the school. So I’m cautiously sticking with my fall prediction and taking the Seminoles. But please understand this: If you gave me the ability to narrow it to a pair of schools, I’m still not sure I’d bat a thousand on that question.

Paul Biancardi: This is only a guess here, but I think he is not ready to make a decision and may be waiting to see who is leaving for the NBA draft. For most players, they are concerned about playing time and too many players at their position. For Wiggins, it would be about wanting to play with the right talent — and enough talent to win big. To have not made a decision yet tells me he will wait until after the NBA early-entry eligibility deadline of April 28, which would likely push his announcement to a May decision. But when the smoke clears, I think it will be Florida State.

Reggie Rankin: I am going to stick with my previous prediction of the Kansas Jayhawks. It’s just a gut feeling. All the other elite players in the class have played their hand. I think Wiggins knows which style of play fits him best, who he would like to play with, who he can play for, who can prepare him best for the NBA and where he can win immediately. I have a vision of Wiggins and fellow McDonald’s All American Wayne Selden running the wings in Allen Fieldhouse. I also believe players know players, and after watching the development of Ben McLemore at Kansas, I could see Wiggins similarly wanting to be the star on his own big stage.

Adam Finkelstein: It’s starting to look like Kentucky’s 2013 class may just be a little too crowded for the top-ranked player in the country. A week ago I thought North Carolina looked to be building momentum, but after comments from Wiggins’ family this week, it looks as if Florida State still has a very good chance of getting this done. Forget about the fact that Florida State doesn’t have the national-caliber brand of Kentucky, North Carolina or Kansas. What the Seminoles do have is the opportunity for Wiggins to follow in his parents’ footsteps and yet still build his own legacy as perhaps the most important recruit to ever pick FSU.

Jamie Squire/Getty Images
The departure of Ben McLemore to the NBA could help Bill Self and Kansas land Andrew Wiggins.
Joel Francisco: Wiggins has taken all his visits, and apparently Kansas may have had the most significant impact on his recruitment. Up until a month or so ago, it was thought that he would follow in his father’s footsteps and attend Florida State. Going to play for the Seminoles would be ideal if he feels he is ready to put a team on his back and lead it to a conference title and beyond. However, despite what most pundits say, Wiggins has holes in his game (such as jump-shooting and ballhandling) that may get exposed while being the focal point of an offense. If he does attend one of the other three schools — UNC, Kentucky or Kansas — he will be able to exhibit his physical talent but the ball would not always be in his hands, as it might be at Florida State. With Ben McLemore heading to the NBA draft, along with an outstanding recruiting class at Kansas, the Jayhawks appear to be the most logical choice.

John Stovall: This one will be very interesting. All four schools still have a legitimate shot, and each school has an angle that keeps it in play. Kentucky has the aura of a winning program (this past season notwithstanding), a track record of producing one-and-done players and realistic national championship goals. Wiggins could also be part of the best recruiting class in history at Kentucky. Kansas and North Carolina offer a proven record of success, immediate playing time, the possibility of being one-and-done and a chance to win the national title. Florida State, meanwhile, has the family tradition and a legit possibility of having the program built around him for one season. The main drawback for Florida State is that it won’t be mentioned in the initial national championship conversation heading into next season. But remember, Wichita State was in the Final Four this year and nobody had the Shockers in the preseason top 25. My prediction is Florida State.

Mike LaPlante: Talk to 10 different recruiting experts and you may get 10 different responses as to where and why Wiggins will choose a particular school. After weighing all the possible factors, I think Wiggins picks Florida State. Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton has done an excellent job forming a strong relationship with the family. Additionally, Wiggins, who is a likely one-and-done candidate, will be the featured player within the team’s system and will have a chance to learn how to help lead a very good team through the tough ACC and potentially a great run in the NCAA tournament. And finally, although Wiggins’ father, Mitchell, played at FSU, Andrew would be able to create his own special legacy with the Seminoles and could have a potential Kevin Durant-type impact on the program. I predict Florida State wins the recruiting battle because it has the most to sell.

[alingeParticipant]

Thanks

[Lotto StudParticipant]

Right now I think his favorites are Kansas UK FSU in that order.

[ASAP HenryParticipant]

I really hope he picks Kansas. I’m not a huge supporter of any team that he’s considering, I just think he would fit in best at Kansas. He would no doubt be the teams best player, but he would have enough help where he wouldn’t have to shoulder all of the responsibility every game like he would at FSU. Him and Wayne Selden would be absolutely dynamic together.

Kentucky has wayy to many players who will all want minutes and shots. And in the case of UNC, for some reason I feel like Roy Williams kind of handicaps his star wing players. At Kansas Coach Self would put him in a system that showcases all of his tools, while at the same time allow him to develop some of his weaknesses.

No matter what school he picks however I can’t wait to see him play in college next year. I haven’t been this excited about a prospect entering college since Kevin Durant and Greg Oden played their freshman years at Texas and OSU

[HobbyOGParticipant]

question: I don’t really follow FSU, IF he chooses FSU who is he playing with? Do they have a team to compete? The ACC is going to be stacked next year..

[BigMac12111Participant]

Without Wiggins, FSU has a good chance to compete with most teams in the ACC; with Wiggins, they’re a darkhorse pick to win the conference (I don’t think they will, but you never know). They have guys with legit size up front, with both Kiel Turpin and Boris Bojanovsky being true 7 footers. They also have F Okaro White who made a big stride last year and someone who gets good looks at the basket. He’s most likely going to be the PF. They also got Jarquez Smith from Georgia coming in who should be a good bench guy unless Hamilton goes small and has Smith/White be the PF/C. Really comes down to how well Smith plays as he could be a good guy to get in transition and become a stretch 4.

The biggest need for FSU is a guy to initiate the offense and a wing player. With Rathan-Mayes coming to town, FSU should have checked off the former of those two needs as RM should be able to come in and take on one of the roles Snaer just gave up: guy who can handle the ball and initiate the offense. He’ll probably be in the back-court with Devon Bookert; guy takes efficient shots and can handle the ball as well. The last thing they need is a wing player and preferably a star who can take the game over if need be (the other role that Snaer gave up); that’s hopefully where Wiggins comes in. They have good depth at wing, but none of the guys look to be the game-changer that they need. If Wiggins goes there he can really help on the outside and be the guy that can hit “the shot” if they need it. Bench is filled with depth and should be capable of putting out a solid five guys if Hamilton decides to go with a bigger rotation.

All in all, FSU has a good chance to compete without Wiggins and a great chance to compete with him. Don’t think they are winning the ACC next year, but I can see FSU getting to 27-28 wins, overall, and getting 10-12 wins in conference.

[DlesnieParticipant]

As a Clemson fan I really hope he picks FSU. The impact he would have on that program would be astronomical. When you’re a little fish swimming around with the sharks in the ACC like our programs are, Wiggins means the world.

[HobbyOGParticipant]

It would not make there program “Astronomical” if he doesn’t have help and he’s one and done..especially playing in the ACC.

[OrangeBallParticipant]

I feel that it goes FSU, Kansas, UK, UNC in order of where he considering. In many interviews with he and his family members it is stated taht family is very important to him wihich is why I feel FSU is the number one choice as well as the fact that Rathan-Meyes being a friend and a highschool teamate already commiting. Kansas is a my second choice of the comments he made about Bill Self and his coaching staff, but also being in the same state as his brother who is at whichita. Uk because of the glamour and the success record of the school turning kids into pro’s. I really cant say many good things about UNC because the wing players at the school havent seemed to improve much after arrival and there are many duds from the wing that have been drafted from UNC in the NBA, the only positive i can really think of is the National exposure of playing at a storied program with the rivarly between Duke and Jabari Parker.

[OrangeBallParticipant]

double post

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