Jabari Parker/AP Photo
Jabari Parker offered a glimpse into his tightly controlled recruitment Wednesday night, but he didn’t really shed any new light on where he might end up.
The No. 1 player in the class of 2013 tweeted a list of 10 schools that started with Kentucky and ended with a note telling followers not to read too much into the Cats’ placement: “UK, Stanford, Michigan State, Kansas, Florida, Duke, BYU, Georgetown, DePaul, UNC. No order.”
Missing from the list was homestate Illinois, which made Parker its No. 1 priority but apparently lost any chance when coach Bruce Weber was fired after the season. Also absent was Louisville. Parker praised the program and coach Rick Pitino in an interview earlier this spring. Washington, coached by Lorenzo Romar, was another omission. Romar was once NBA teammates with Parker’s father and the two remain friends.
While there were few surprises, the tweet was a departure from what has recently become a tight-lipped recruitment. After Sports Illustrated put Parker on its cover in May, the player’s parents said they would limit media interviews and vowed to prevent college coaches from calling or texting Parker directly. Parker claimed at the beginning of the contact period that only one head coach had his new phone number. He kept that coach’s identity a secret.
Michigan State and Duke are widely considered the favorites, though neither Parker nor anyone in his circle has publicly acknowledged that. He has praised UK, Kansas and North Carolina in the past, and BYU is seen as a possible darkhorse due to Parker’s Mormon faith. Hometown DePaul has the distinction as the only Illinois school on the list. There hasn’t been as much buzz surrounding the other three: Florida, Stanford and Georgetown.
Parker’s father told Rivals.com last week that the top recruit would likely narrow his list to five schools at the conclusion of the summer period. After that would come the official visits, and then possibly a fall decision.
Fans of the 10 remaining schools will surely be waiting anxiously to see who makes the next cut.
I have heard Michigan State and Duke lead. Like our chances if Coach Cal goes after him. The man owns Chicago for talent