The No. 1 recruit in college basketball is headed to Memphis.
Surrounded by his mom, sister and father, five-star forward James Wiseman made his college announcement in the auditorium of Memphis East High School, where Wiseman is a senior. His announcement was broadcast live on SportsCenter.
Hello from East High School, where James Wiseman is about to make his college decision and a lot of prominent Memphis boosters are here to witness it. Draw your own conclusions … pic.twitter.com/rX1dRc7uB8
— Mark Giannotto (@mgiannotto) November 20, 2018
The decision to turn down offers from Hall Of Fame coaches to play for first-year head coach Penny Hardaway will be seen by some as unnecessarily risky, but Wiseman and other top recruits clearly believe in the type of program that Hardaway is building. (RELATED: Former Top College Basketball Recruit Files Lawsuit Against Adidas)
Breaking: James Wiseman, the No. 1 player in the ESPN 100, declares that he will play for Penny Hardaway at Memphis. pic.twitter.com/MJVCE7oQeK
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 20, 2018
Five-star forward D.J. Jeffries recently committed to the Tigers, as well.
Before his announcement, Wiseman was publicly down to five schools (Florida State, Kansas, Kentucky, Memphis and Vanderbilt), although most believe that his recruitment was always a battle between Memphis and Kentucky.
Wiseman is only expected to play one season at Memphis, as he is widely considered one of the top prospects for the 2020 NBA Draft.