Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
Thomas Bryant Says Mizzou Working Hardest, Plans to Sign Late
Despite a weekend visit to Syracuse, Thomas Bryant says Missouri is recruiting him the hardest and he plans to make his college decision during the spring.
“I would say mostly Missouri is recruiting me the hardest,” the 6-foot-10, 235-pound Bryant said Monday by phone from Huntington (W.V.) Prep. “Syracuse is recruiting me but Missouri has been recruiting me real hard the latest.”
Missouri hired former Huntington coach Rob Fulford over the summer, and that hire paid immediate dividends when the Tigers landed Canadian star Montaque “Teki” Gill-Caesar, who reclassed to 2014 and signed on with the Tigers.
“They’re recruiting me a lot,” Bryant said of Mizzou. “I like the facilities, the facilities are beautiful and the people around there. And of course having coach Rob there is also a plus.”
Bryant will take an official visit to Indiana Oct. 3 and to Mizzou Oct. 10, with guards Isaiah Briscoe and Antonio Blakeney expected to make the Mizzou trip as well. Mizzou coach Kim Anderson had a home visit with Briscoe on Sunday, and Blakeney will reportedly have a home visit with Kentucky on Wednesday after decommitting from Louisville.
“We’re just going to take our visits and see how it goes from there,” Bryant said of the possibility of playing with Briscoe and Blakeney. “If it works out for us to play together, then it works out.”
Syracuse has long been considered a possible destination for Bryant, a Rochester (N.Y.) native, but it is no certainty.
He said he did enjoy his visit, though.
“It was good, I liked it,” he said. “It was a great experience.”
Linda Bryant, Thomas’s mother, also enjoyed it.
“We had a good time,” she said. “We were everywhere….We just stayed busy looking at everything and taking the time out to see where my son will be, the facilities, where he would stay. They showed us all of that.”
She added: “We feel good. We had a chat with [coach Jim] Boeheim, of course.”
Asked what his role at Syracuse would be, Thomas said, “I would play inside depending on who was playing. I could come in and play be a big contributor.”
Linda said her son has yet to decide if he will take his two other official visits.
“Who knows?” she asked. “He may narrow it down to those three. Who knows? We don’t know.”
As for when he will decide, Bryant may join Briscoe, Jaylen Brown, Cheick Diallo and Caleb Swanigan in signing late.
“Yes, most likely that’s what I plan, in the springtime,” he said. “I get to see more of what a team is about, take my time and not rush and do all my visits. I can just take my time and decide where I want to go.”
Added Linda: “Of course, we want to wait till the spring, so we can see the teams and how the coach interacts with his team members. This requires where he wants to go and what’s going to be the right fit for him.”
Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle.
A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013.
He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.
Despite a weekend visit to Syracuse, Thomas Bryant says Missouri is recruiting him the hardest and he plans to make his college decision during the spring.
“I would say mostly Missouri is recruiting me the hardest,” the 6-foot-10, 235-pound Bryant said Monday by phone from Huntington (W.V.) Prep. “Syracuse is recruiting me but Missouri has been recruiting me real hard the latest.”
Missouri hired former Huntington coach Rob Fulford over the summer, and that hire paid immediate dividends when the Tigers landed Canadian star Montaque “Teki” Gill-Caesar, who reclassed to 2014 and signed on with the Tigers.
“They’re recruiting me a lot,” Bryant said of Mizzou. “I like the facilities, the facilities are beautiful and the people around there. And of course having coach Rob there is also a plus.”
Bryant will take an official visit to Indiana Oct. 3 and to Mizzou Oct. 10, with guards Isaiah Briscoe and Antonio Blakeney expected to make the Mizzou trip as well. Mizzou coach Kim Anderson had a home visit with Briscoe on Sunday, and Blakeney will reportedly have a home visit with Kentucky on Wednesday after decommitting from Louisville.
“We’re just going to take our visits and see how it goes from there,” Bryant said of the possibility of playing with Briscoe and Blakeney. “If it works out for us to play together, then it works out.”
Syracuse has long been considered a possible destination for Bryant, a Rochester (N.Y.) native, but it is no certainty.
He said he did enjoy his visit, though.
“It was good, I liked it,” he said. “It was a great experience.”
Linda Bryant, Thomas’s mother, also enjoyed it.
“We had a good time,” she said. “We were everywhere….We just stayed busy looking at everything and taking the time out to see where my son will be, the facilities, where he would stay. They showed us all of that.”
She added: “We feel good. We had a chat with [coach Jim] Boeheim, of course.”
Asked what his role at Syracuse would be, Thomas said, “I would play inside depending on who was playing. I could come in and play be a big contributor.”
Linda said her son has yet to decide if he will take his two other official visits.
“Who knows?” she asked. “He may narrow it down to those three. Who knows? We don’t know.”
As for when he will decide, Bryant may join Briscoe, Jaylen Brown, Cheick Diallo and Caleb Swanigan in signing late.
“Yes, most likely that’s what I plan, in the springtime,” he said. “I get to see more of what a team is about, take my time and not rush and do all my visits. I can just take my time and decide where I want to go.”
Added Linda: “Of course, we want to wait till the spring, so we can see the teams and how the coach interacts with his team members. This requires where he wants to go and what’s going to be the right fit for him.”
