BSD Recruit Report: 2018 Basketball Class Update

With the inevitably slow summer months finally upon us, it has gotten to the point where relevant Wake Forest sports news is few and far between. The baseball team has given us a little bit of extra excitement lately, but in general things will be fairly quiet around here until football season picks up. That is unless you’re like me and find recruiting to be one of the more fascinating and complex aspects of all sports and can’t get enough of it. In that case, the fun is just getting started, my friends.

This article will provide brief updates on a number of Wake Forest’s top basketball targets midway through the summer AAU circuit. There have been new offers, official visits scheduled, and lists cut in the recent weeks. Let’s go over it all below and see what we’re working with.

Devoe Takes a Visit, Sets a Visit

4* PG Michael Devoe is fresh coming off an unofficial visit to Florida which he described as “great. I loved it.” The Gators are the hometown school for the talented guard who is averaging 15.8 PPG on the Nike EYBL tour with 4.6 APG and 42% from 3. He’s planning on cutting his list at the end of the AAU season and all signs point to Wake being on it. The Deacs are the only team to have an Official Visit scheduled for Devoe (September 26), but I expect UF to join that list in the near future. Keep in mind when exactly he schedules his Florida visit, as being the last school on the calendar usually has an advantage.

Brand New Offer to 2018 3* PF

Wake Forest offered 2018 3* PF Jarvis Thomas, who plays for Howard Pulley on the Nike Circuit, on Monday evening. His Minnesota-based AAU squad earned the #1 seed at Nike’s Peach Jam last week and is currently 13-3 on the tour, making it arguably the best travel team in all of high school basketball. My initial report on Thomas is that he is 100% the type of player Danny Manning could turn into an absolute monster at the next level.

His style looks like a combination of John Collins (Athleticism), Devin Thomas (Energy), and Draymond Green (Versatility) from the tape I’ve seen. He does a little bit of everything for Howard Pulley on the offensive and defensive end and is currently shooting 58% from the field against oftentimes taller competition (Thomas is listed at 6’7). He can also do this:

Thomas’ recruitment looks to be very wide open at the moment and if Danny Manning can develop a strong relationship with the big man, who knows what he could turn into while donning the Black and Gold.

Darius Days Update; Wake Not Listed

Darius Days, a Florida-based PF who Wake offered back in April and has been heavily involved with, recently picked up an offer from Kansas after tearing up multiple showcases. That isn’t necessarily bad news considering Danny Manning has beaten KU in a recruiting battle before (Hi, Chaundee), but his most recent update is cause for concern. Days specifically talked about KU, LSU, Texas A&M, and Pitt (???) in a Rivals article that was released Tuesday morning. Given his recent uptake in High Major interest, this might be a recruitment that lasts all the way to November or later. Days did embark on a visit to Winston back in February 2016, but I think another one before the end of the summer would be key into making his Top 5 and staying in the race til the end.

Deacs Are in Jordan Lathon’s Five

Wake Forest recently made the Top 5 for 3* PG Jordan Lathon out of Grandview, Missouri. The Deacs are joined by Illinois, Northwestern, Iowa State, and Butler on the list, making it the only non-Midwest school Lathon is heavily considering. When asked what he liked about WF he stated “Having the opportunity to play in the ACC is second to none. Coach Manning and Woodberry believe in my ability and see me impacting the program instantly.” Unfortunately, highlights and statistics are tough to come by for Lathon, but I’m willing to trust the staff’s judgment that he could be an early contributor for the program. Expect unofficial visits to be scheduled in the coming weeks and a final decision to be made sooner rather than later.

Aaron Wiggins Off the Board to the Terps

In case you missed it, 4* wing target Aaron Wiggins committed to Maryland this past weekend over Wake Forest, Kansas, Virginia, and Virginia Tech. The Deacs offered Wiggins back in January and was making serious ground with him throughout the spring, often listed as one of his early favorites. After a few phenomenal weeks on the Under Armour Association tour, Wiggins’ recruitment skyrocketed as he began to get linked with some of the top programs in the nation. Despite the rise in suitors, Wake’s name always remained high on his list, and it appeared that showing early interest might yield massive results in the Wesleyan Christian Academy product.

Unfortunately, Maryland’s pursuit of Wiggins had a 4 month head-start on the Deacs, and an Official Visit over the weekend sealed the deal for good. With Wiggins off the table and Nate Laszewski trending Stanford’s way, it becomes vital that the staff lands at least one of John Newman, Isaiah Mucius, and Jaylen Hoard. The list of available prospects is only going to shrink in the coming weeks, and Wake needs to take advantage of its competitive position with these three wing targets it has been prioritizing for the better part of a year now.

Finally, you can check out the latest 2018 Big Board here, which is updated daily based on the most recent news.

That’s all for this week’s edition of BSD Recruit Report. For more frequent and daily Wake Forest recruiting news, follow me on Twitter @DeacFan3.