Updates on In-State Juniors
Following are updates on four prospective Michigan recruits in the state's Class of 2003:
Dion Harris, a 6-4 shooting guard from Detroit Redford, discussed his recruitment in a conversation with The Wolverine last week. He identified Michigan State, Connecticut, Missouri, Louisville and Michigan as schools that he is considering.
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"While the kid can get a crowd excited, he takes more pride in winning the game and making the big plays to do it," said an article at PrepSpotlight.com last week. "Harris has a smooth style that makes the game look easy, sometimes too easy.
"His jumper is very good out past the three point line and he is very skilled at getting to the basket. What makes Harris different from most is that his game is so complete. He is a very good passer, a very good defender, a very skilled offensive player, and a true floor leader on the court."
The Prep Spotlight article mentioned that in addition to the five schools mentioned above, Harris is also considering North Carolina, Duke and Iowa. He is ranked No. 6 by Prep Stars Recruiter's Handbook, No. 15 by Prep Spotlight, No. 15 by School Sports, and No. 34 by Hoop Scoop.
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The strongest challenger to Harris's status as the state's top junior is likely 6-6 small forward Olu Famutimi of Flint (Mich.) Northwestern. Although most in-state observers prefer Harris, many national recruiting services side with Famutimi after watching him this past summer. He is ranked No. 6 by Prep Stars, No. 15 by Prep Spotlight, No. 15 by School Sports, and No. 34 by Hoop Scoop.
Famutimi's AAU coach with the Michigan Hurricanes, Chris Grier, recently told ACCToday.com that the high-flying athlete will take unofficial visits to Missouri and Louisville in the near future. Grier also mentioned Michigan State, Michigan, Florida, Duke, Iowa, Iowa State, Cincinnati, Kent, Syracuse, Wake Forest, North Carolina, Auburn and Clemson as being under consideration.
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Brandon Bell, the younger brother of recently graduated Michigan State star Charlie Bell, is a 6-1 junior point guard at Flint Southwestern Academy this year. Michigan Recruiting Index recently spoke with the elder Bell about Brandon's recruitment.
Michigan State, Michigan, Connecticut, Marquette, Toledo, Kent State, Iowa State and Iowa are among the schools expressing an interest, according to the MRI report. Prep Spotlight ranks Bell as the No. 3 junior point guard in Michigan, while Michigan Preps has him No. 2 at that position.
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Although he has increasingly seen his status challenged, 6-9 center Walter Waters of Detroit Southeastern has been widely regarded as the top big man in the state's Class of 2003 for some time. In national rankings, that remains the case; Waters is ranked No. 32 nationally by Hoop Scoop, No. 48 by Fox Sports and No. 93 by Prep Spotlight.
A recent article from the Michigan Recruiting Index reported that some of the top schools in Waters' recruitment include Louisville, Michigan State, Michigan, Missouri and Pittsburgh.
All four of these players have been identified as possible Michigan recruiting targets. Other in-state juniors U-M is pursuing include 6-10 center Drew Naymick of North Muskegon High School, 6-1 point guard Brandon Cotton of Detroit DePorres, 6-3 combo guard Brandon Jenkins of Detroit Southeastern, 6-7 power forward Ije Nwankwo of Detroit Country Day, and 6-2 shooting guard Byron Davis of Detroit Rogers.
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