Marques Bolden, the No. 1 center in the Class of 2016 out of DeSoto (TX), has several visits in the works in the coming weeks and is targeting a winter decision for his college choice.
The 6-foot-10 Bolden will take an official visit to Kansas beginning Friday and is also “working on” visits to Kentucky for Big Blue Madness on Oct. 16 and to Duke for Countdown to Craziness on Oct. 17, his father, Melvin, confirmed.
He is also considering officials to Alabama, Oklahoma and TCU, he told Scout.com at the USA Basketball Junior National Team minicamp.
Bolden previously took an official to Kentucky Sept. 2.
“It was pretty fun,” Bolden told Evan Daniels of Scout. “That was my first time actually begin on Kentucky’s campus. It’s also great spending time with Coach [John] Calipari, Kenny Payne and the guys out there, so I really had a good time.”
Kentucky has sent a slew of big men to the NBA lottery in recent years, including Anthony Davis, Nerlens Noel and Julius Randle, and that isn’t lost on Bolden.
“The tradition they have of the bigs they’ve put in the league and how hard they work,” he said. “They create the the best NBA players out there, such as Anthony Davis.”
Bolden also visited Duke Sept. 18 (for a second time) and may go back again this month.
“That trip was eye-opening as well,” he told Scout. “I got a chance to finally spend time with Coach K and the staff. That was actually my second time on that campus. I had a former high school teammate, Matt Jones, showing me around, so I really had a good time up there. I learned a lot.”
Bolden seems very high on what Duke has to offer, and praised incoming small forward Jayson Tatum during their time together at USA Basketball.
“He is vet of USA Basketball,” Bolden said of Tatum, according to Paul Biancardi of ESPN.com. “If you don’t understand something, he explains it. He is a leader.”
Bolden added to Scout: “I think I will fit in very well. I’ve become close with the guys that are already going there, like Jayson and Frank [Jackson] and Javin [DeLaurier] so we’re trying to build that relationship. I think it would be a pretty good fit if I were to go there.”
Duke already has Tatum, Jackson and DeLaurier committed for 2016 and remains in good position with both Bolden and 6-10 Oak Hill Academy (VA) forward Harry Giles. If they add either or both Bolden and Giles, Duke could jump back up to the No. 1 recruiting class in 2016, a spot currently held by Michigan State, according to Scout.
Kansas is up next this weekend.
“Just the way they use their bigs, I think they use their bigs more than any other program,” he said.
Bolden is also considering Oklahoma, TCU, Alabama, Baylor and Wake Forest, and may visit one of them as well.
“I’ll most likely take more visits,” he told Scout. “I’ll probably might finish off the last two and then make a decision from there, but me and my parents are getting closer and closer to making a decision.”
Asked when he might decide, he said, “Most likely around December or January, that will be the time. I really want to focus on this high school season. I don’t want all this recruiting stuff getting to me, so I’m trying to make the decision quick.”
