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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.
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Thursday / December 19.
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    • Articles

    4_947917

    By JACK LeGWIN

    Special to ZAGSBLOG

    The top schools in the nation are trying to convince Jayson Tatum that their program is right for him.

    “Illinois watched me last week,” Tatum told SNY.tv. “Coach K from Duke will watch me on Wednesday. He calls to check in on me frequently.”

    Kentucky Head Coach John Calipari will also watch Tatum Wednesday..

    Tatum says that seven schools are working the hardest, keeping in touch the most at the moment.

    “Duke, UNC, Illinois, St. Louis, Kentucky, Wake Forest and Michigan State are showing the most interest,” Tatum said. 

    Articles, DePaul, Minnesota

    Photo via 247sports.com

    Photo via 247sports.com

    By JOHN PAVIA

    Special to ZAGSBLOG

    Sunrise Christian Prep center Bakary Konate committed to the University of Minnesota on Wednesday to become their fifth commitment to play under coach Richard Pitino next season.

    Konate’s Sunrise Christian Prep coach, Luke Barnwell, offered his take to SNY.tv on what Konate will bring to the Golden Gophers next season.

    “He’s a legit 6-11 guy,” he said. “He’s very long, a defensive presence at the rim and a pretty good shot blocker. He moves pretty well and gets up and down the floor. He’s fairly skilled and can make perimeter shots for a big guy. He will be a defensive presence right away at Minnesota, but offensively, he may need to develop a little bit more.”

    Kentucky, NBA Draft

    POythressKentucky freshman center Dakari Johnson and sophomore forward Alex Poythress both made the wise decision to return to Kentucky for next season, adding to what will surely be a loaded frontcourt and a very deep team.

    The 7-foot Johnson is projected as the No. 18 pick in the 2015 NBA Draft by DraftExpress.com, while the 6-7 Poythress is projected as the No. 42 pick.

    Both can help their stock with a strong season next year.

    Articles, NBA Draft

    NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament-Michigan vs LouisvilleFormer Louisville forward Chane Behanan has hired an agent and will declare this week for the NBA Draft, a source close to the situation told SNY.tv.

    “Yeah, sometime this week,” the source said. “He signed, he’s got an agent already.”

    Behanan took to Twitter to respond, saying, “Never Reported anything so don’t listen. If I haven’t said it then it’s not true.”

    One veteran NBA scout thinks going to the NBA is a bad move, calling it a “mistake.”

    “Off the court issues will really affect his draft stock,” the scout told SNY.tv. “He goes undrafted. He is a small 4 with no NBA-type  3 skills.”

    Articles

    DonovanLouisville coach Rick Pitino thinks Billy Donovan would be a “terrific” NBA coach, but says he’ll likely get “cold feet” and won’t make the jump.

    The Florida coach, who in 2007 took the Orlando Magic job only to have a change of heart that brought him back to Florida, is now being linked to the Minnesota Timberwolves position vacated by Rick Adelman’s retirement.

    “Billy would be terrific because he’s a lot like Brad Stevens in his personality,” Pitino, who coached Donovan at Providence, said Wednesday on ESPN’s Mike & Mike.

    Virginia

    Marquette’s loss is Virginia’s gain.

    Onetime Marquette commit Marial Shayok pulled the trigger for Virginia on Tuesday, heading to play for the Cavs after he decommitted from Marquette in the wake of the coaching change.

    Shayok will now play against Buzz Williams, the man who recruited him to Marquette but is now coaching at Virginia Tech.

    “Happy to announce I’ve committed to the University of Virginia!” Shayok Tweeted.

    “It’s a great school, program and coaching staff and Marial will be able to have an impact on the team his freshman year,” his father, Makur, told SNY.tv.

    Articles, Recruiting

    Keith ThomasKeith Thomas of Westchester Community College enjoyed his visit to St. John’s and now has several more coming up, but the Johnnies appear to be positioned well for the 6-foot-8 forward.

    Thomas will visit South Florida Wednesday-Thursday and then head to Miami May 1-2. He will have one official remaining after that and may trip to Arizona. He has also been to Loyola Chicago.

    “He enjoyed it, he thinks [head coach Steve] Lavin was a genius on a lot of stuff,” WCC coach Tyrone Mushatt told SNY.tv.

    Lavin surely pitched the appeal of playing in New York and at Madison Square Garden, which struck a chord.

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