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Indiana Basketball Recruiting: Waiting for Kris Wilkes

A time of subdued anxiety for Indiana fans as the biggest local recruitment since Cody Zeller hits the final stretch.

By David_Siegel

News, notes, and any other tidbits that deal with Hoosier recruiting targets

- With Kris Wilkes down to 3 schools, each of the remaining programs (IU/Illinois/UCLA) have strong reasons to believe they are the one and only for the 5-star SF from Indianapolis. Wilkes has played his whole recruitment very close to the chest, so anyone claiming to have inside information as to which way Wilkes is leaning is going off of pure speculation. That being said, while the appeal of being in LA and focusing on going pro after one year in Westwood is tantalizing, I simply do not believe Wilkes will pass up the opportunity to be the hometown hero in Bloomington, and will immediately become the most talked-about recruit at IU since Cody Zeller. Sidenote: If he goes elsewhere, I reserve the right to edit this piece retroactively. Cool? Cool.

- An interesting turn of events for David Beatty this week, as the 4-star 2017 PG prospect out of Philadelphia opened up his recruitment. Beatty had narrowed down his list to 5 schools - Indiana included - with the intent of taking Official Visits to each before making a decision. That's not the case anymore, as the 6'3", 170 lb combo guard is now "open to any school that is interested in him", according to his Philly Pride AAU coach Kamal Yard. No word on what that means for Indiana's standing with Beatty, but good lord, Kamal Yard, use some better phrasing. That "interested in anyone interested" reeks of desperation, regardless of its actual intent.

- Tremont Waters, the diminutive PG ranked #37 overall in the class of 2017, has had an interesting few weeks. After heavy speculation that Kentucky had re-energized its recruitment of the 5'10" guard, Waters was seen as a heavy UK favorite. Now, after an official visit to Kansas this past weekend, word has trickled in that Kentucky and Kansas still haven't given up pursuit of shinier prizes in the form of 5-star PG's Trevon Duval and Trae Young. As a result, Indiana could be the beneficiary of these powerhouses shooting for the stars and not realizing the gem right in front of them. For what it's worth, UK and IU make up 92% of the Crystal Ball Predictions for Waters, but his recruitment is still very much a fluid situation.

- Brandon Randolph, once considered a strong IU target over the spring and early summer, verbally committed to Arizona today. The 4-star wing prospect initially showed interest in the Hoosiers, but that waned as the summer moved along, and Indiana did not even make Randolph's final cut.

- Another name to cross off for 2017 is Deng Gak, the 6' 10", 4-star C out of New Jersey. Originally, Indiana had been a part of his final five, but after Gak canceled his Indiana visit and his list was trimmed to 3, Duke and Indiana were left off, leaving a battle between Miami, Florida, and Kansas for the talented big man.

- UPDATE: Billy Preston, 5-star F out of Oak Hill Academy, will take an official visit to Indiana next week for Hoosier Hysteria. The versatile 6'10" Preston, ranked #12 in the class of 2017, has been a relatively new name on the IU recruiting front, but Tom Crean has put in overtime and allowed Indiana to make up for lost time. Hopefully this is the first of many Hoosier Hysterias for Preston, because he could probably win the dunk contest right this second.

- As always, keep up to date with our ever-changing recruiting board.

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