NEW YORK — Chris McCullough’s recruitment will enter a new phase this summer as he takes a number of unofficial visits and then cuts his list to five or six.
“He’s going to be cutting down the list to the top six at the end of July,” Terrance “Munch” Williams, McCullough’s coach with Team Scan, told SNY.tv after the 6-foot-9 2014 forward put up 14 points in a 75-20 rout of the Brooklyn Leaders in the U16 bracket at the Rumble in the Bronx at Baruch College.
“He’s not going to take any unofficial visits to anyone that didn’t offer.”
McCullough currently holds offers from Kansas, North Carolina, Memphis, UConn, Syracuse, Arizona, Pittsburgh, St. John’s, Villanova, Rutgers, Miami, Temple, West Virginia, Providence, Louisville, Georgetown, Florida, Seton Hall, Iowa State and Hofstra.
Virginia Tech and UCLA have also been in contact of late, but have not yet officially offered.
“It’s safe to say that anybody that’s offered has got a chance [to make the final list],” Williams said.
“We’re planning on making a visit to Memphis sometime in August,” Williams said. “Memphis is definitely a visit. Syracuse is definitely a visit. We’re waiting on Kansas to set up a scheduled visit, so it’s going to be a busy August.”
McCullough has also been invited to team camps at Rutgers and West Virginia over the next couple months.
“We still haven’t decided on which ones we’re actually going to go to,” he said.
“We’re going to make up the schedule for unofficial visits in August and that’s the timeline. So maybe September, October we’ll come out with the final six.”
McCullough was originally in the Class of 2013 but is currently listed as 2014. Whoever lands him could get a true impact player and potential pro.
“He has a world of talent,” longtime New York recruiting expert Tom Konchalski told SNY.tv.
“He played noticeably harder tonight. He ran the court harder, more consistently, was involved in more plays. He had no problem dunking, alley-ooping. He played harder. He’s a 6-8 kid with a lot of skill who the complaints about him in the past were that he didn’t always know how to involve himself in the game and was taking plays off. But he has a world of athletic ability, has a world of skill, and he certainly has the potential to play at the highest level.”
McCullough’s Team Scan teammate Shavar Newkirk is a 5-11 point guard from Cardinal Hayes who continues to pile up offers while he runs the offense on the AAU circuit.
“Shavar’s doing wonderful,” Williams said. “He’s probably having the best season of anyone on the team. He has offers from Iona, Manhattan, Providence, Seton Hall, Rutgers, Iowa State. He has interest from West Virginia, Syracuse, St. John’s, Stanford and Yale.
“He projects to do well on the SAT. I think he could get a couple more offers by July. I could see him in the Atlantic 10 or Ivy League, something like that.
“He’s a kid, the sky’s the limit. If he puts his mind to it, he’s probably one of the best point guards on the East Coast. I love him to death. To me, he’s obviously the No. 1 point guard in 2014 in New York. And if he continues to play and the more people that see him, they’ll learn that he’s the engine that makes us go.”
