Editor’s note: On Tuesday, Canadian high school hoops sensation Andrew Wiggins will announce on where he will attend school next fall. In case you missed it, Sportsnet.ca’s Kevin Nielsen recently broke down the final four schools on his list.
In an era where secrets are becoming harder and harder to keep, Andrew Wiggins has done the impossible: He has managed to keep the entire basketball world guessing as to where he will attend college in the fall.
He has narrowed a lengthy list of college suitors down to four choices — Florida State, Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina — but Wiggins has still managed to leave all of the U.S. college recruiting experts in the dark on which school will win his services.
As soon as the season ended, CBS Sports released a very early Top 25 for next season and all four schools made the cut although the Seminoles were included based upon the opportunity to add Wiggins to the roster.
Wiggins reclassified midseason, moving from the junior class at his high school in Huntington Beach, W.V., which might help explain why it has taken him so long to make the decision but he only has a couple of weeks left before he will make one college basketball fan base breathe a collective sigh of relief while leaving three others upset.
With that in mind, we thought it was prudent to look ahead at some of the strengths and weaknesses of the four schools (in no particular order) that are chasing the services of Canada’s most highly-coveted high school basketball star of all time.
Option 1: Florida St.
Coach: Leonard Hamilton
Last season: 18-16 overall, 9-9 ACC (6th); Lost To Louisiana Tech in first round of NIT
Style of Play: Defence. Defence. Defence. Hamilton isn’t usually able to get the best players to come to Tallahassee but he gets more out of his players than most programs. The Seminoles were in the tournament for four straight years before being relegated to the NIT this spring.
CBS Way-Too-Early Preseason Ranking: No. 26
Next year: The Seminoles return four key seniors, possess a solid recruiting class and appear ready for a return to March Madness. With Wiggins in the fold they may be able to go on a run. Sans Wiggins, they are out during the first weekend.
Why Wiggins might attend Florida St.: It’s all about family ties for Wiggins here. His parents, ex-NBAer Mitchell Wiggins and Marita Payne-Wiggins, a former Canadian Olympian, met on campus back when they were attending school there. In addition, Wiggins’ high school teammate and childhood friend Xavier Rathan-Mayes will be a freshman at Florida St. next season. Rathan-Mayes’ father, Tharon Mayes, is also a former Seminole.
Unlike the other schools on the list, Wiggins would be the highest-rated recruit to attend Florida St. and he would be the out-and-out star at the school which is better known for its play on the gridiron than the hardwood. If the team were successful with Wiggins, it could open the door for other highly-rated recruits to attend in the future.
Why Wiggins might not attend Florida St.: It has been repeatedly reported that Wiggins hates the spotlight. While it will shine on him wherever he goes, he will be asked to carry the load in Tallahassee.
If you have ever seen a Seminoles home game on TV, you may have noticed a dreary arena with several thousand empty seats. The Donald L. Tucker Center opened in 1981 and is a far cry from the arenas in Lexington or Chapel Hill or the legendary Allen Fieldhouse.
Option 2: Kansas
Coach: Bill Self
Last season: 31-6 overall, 14-4 Big 12 (1st); Lost To Michigan 67-65 in Sweet 16
Style of Play: Bill Self teams are among the tops defensively in the country but they are also well-known for their tough, selfless play.
CBS Way-Too-Early Preseason Ranking: No. 20
Next year: Kansas will lose their Top 5 scorers including star guard Ben McLemore, centre Jeff Withey and point guard Elijah Johnson but will return Perry Ellis and Naadir Tharpe, both of whom should be ready to take on bigger roles. They will also welcome a Top-5 recruiting class to the mix.
Why Wiggins might attend Kansas: The Jayhawks are considered the dark horse candidate in the field.
With so many key players graduating, there will be plenty of playing time for the Vaughn, Ont., native but he also has a legitimate chance to make a run to the Final Four. Kansas won the national championship under Self in 2008 and have been a No. 1 seed in the tournament in five of the past seven years.
Self also has a strong track record of developing pro players. He’s had a player drafted in the lottery almost every year, including Thomas Robinson who was selected No. 5 in last year’s draft and Ben McLemore who could be the No. 1 overall pick in June.
Another point in favour of Kansas: Wiggins’ brother, Nick, attends Wichita St., which is just a couple of hours down the road from Lawrence.
Why Wiggins might not attend Kansas: Kansas was the last school to enter the race for Wiggins’ services which means that Self had the least amount of time to develop a relationship with the high-school star. Huntington Prep coach Rob Fulford was once quoted as saying that it took him two years to form a relationship with Wiggins before the Canadian decided to go to school there.
The other issue that might stand in the way for the Jayhawks is that fellow McDonald’s All-American Wayne Selden, who is a one-and-done candidate himself, is also a small forward. While Self will find a way to have both on the floor at the same time, it takes plenty of time for players with similar skill-sets to learn to work together.
Option 3: Kentucky
Coach: John Calipari
Last season: 21-12 overall, 12-6 SEC (2nd); Lost To Robert Morris in first round of NIT
Style of Play: John Calipari’s team was thin last season which forced him away from his usual run-and-gun style of play with a pressing defence and up-tempo offence. He has said it will return next year.
CBS Way-Too-Early Preseason Ranking: No. 1
Next year: Calipari’s life was made much easier when Willie Cauley-Stein, Alex Poythress and Kyle Wiltjer all decided to return and play with what is considered to be one of the best high school classes of all time. Six McDonald’s All-Americans have decided to join the Wildcats.
Why Wiggins might attend Kentucky: World Wide Wes. He is considered to be one of the most powerful men in basketball behind the scenes and has been one of the major reasons why Calipari has been able to rein in top recruiting hauls year after year.
That said, very few of the high-profile athletes that have gone to Lexington to play for Calipari have left disappointed as there seems to be a revolving door of players going to school there and quickly heading to the next level.
Adding Wiggins would make this the greatest recruiting haul of all time and would also make Kentucky the clear-cut favourites to win the national title next year.
Wiggins would also be able to escape some of the spotlight if he were to join the Wildcats as he would be just one part in a team of stars.
The tradition and fanbase are also equal to that of North Carolina and Kansas as they are three of the winningest programs in history.
Why Wiggins might not attend Kentucky: With so many stars coming on board, will there be enough shots to go around? With scoring options at every position, Wiggins would never need to be the guy, which may not be the best for his development either.
While a couple of veterans will return, this team will be lacking in veteran leadership which is a very important ingredient when it comes to the NCAA tournament. You cannot just roll the ball out and win, you need to execute under pressure to be successful.
Option 4: North Carolina
Coach: Roy Williams
Last season: 25-11 overall, 12-6 ACC (3rd); Lost To Kansas in third round of NCAA
Style of Play: The Tar Heels love to push the ball up the floor even on plays that aren’t fast-break opportunities to try to catch the opposing defenders napping.
CBS Way-Too-Early Preseason Ranking: No. 9
Next year: The Tar Heels’ top two scorers, P.J. Hairston and James Michael McAdoo, decided to pass on the draft and return to a Tar Heels team which will only lose Reggie Bullock and Dexter Strickland. A three-man recruiting class which features Isaiah Hicks and Kennedy Meeks will add some extra muscle up front.
Why Wiggins might attend North Carolina: Reggie Bullock’s surprise decision to enter the NBA Draft clears the decks for Wiggins to slide right into the starting small forward job.
Tradition-rich North Carolina has been a basketball powerhouse forever and has produced star NBA swingmen such as James Worthy, Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison.
That tradition has continued under current coach Roy Williams as Harrison Barnes and Danny Green have been among the many former Tar Heels to play in the NBA.
Current assistant coach Hubert Davis was a sharpshooter in his prime and could help Wiggins with one of the few weaknesses in his game.
Much like Kentucky and Kansas, Wiggins would step into a ready-made situation where he would have a valid chance to win a title in his only season in college.
But unlike Kansas and Kentucky, there is a stronger group of older players on board that could help with his adjustment to college life.
Why Wiggins might not attend North Carolina: While Williams has been able to attract some great players over the years, the North Carolina program has seen numerous players defect, including the Wear twins and Larry Drew II. These transfers were partly based on a team that was overloaded with talent, leaving some players unhappy with playing time. Wiggins likely won’t face that problem with Bullock gone but it is still a red flag.
North Carolina, Kentucky and Kansas are all fairly similar programs with rich histories but if Wiggins is at all interested in creating a legacy, he would be more likely to choose Florida St.
Even with a title, a one-and-done season will not allow him to be considered with other Carolina greats such as Michael Jordan, Worthy, Carter and Kenny Smith.