{"id":356,"date":"2021-11-24T15:51:16","date_gmt":"2021-11-24T15:51:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=356"},"modified":"2021-11-24T15:51:16","modified_gmt":"2021-11-24T15:51:16","slug":"high-school-basketball-signing-day-breakdown-chicago-sun-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=356","title":{"rendered":"High school basketball: Signing Day breakdown – Chicago Sun-Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

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This recruiting cycle was unlike any other. It has been an extremely tough road for so many reasons for the seniors in the Class of 2022 over the last 18 months.
This recruiting cycle was unlike any other. It\u2019s been an extremely tough road for so many reasons for the seniors in the Class of 2022 over the past 18 months.
But the National Signing Period begins this week and there are recruiting steals and storylines just as there are every year.
Yorkville Christian\u2019s Jaden Schutt and Glenbard West\u2019s Braden Huff signing with Duke and Gonzaga, respectively, is a significant story.
These are two massive college basketball heavyweights\u2013\u2013 Duke is Duke with one of the top recruiting classes in the country and Gonzaga is again the preseason No. 1 team \u2013\u2013 that secured the top two talents in Illinois.
It\u2019s been quite some time \u2013\u2013 seven years, in fact \u2013\u2013 since the nation\u2019s biggest college basketball powers came into Illinois and nabbed multiple players from the state. The Class of 2014 featured the top three players, Young\u2019s Jahlil Okafor, Curie\u2019s Cliff Alexander and Marian Catholic\u2019s Tyler Ulis, signing with three Blue Bloods: Duke, Kansas and Kentucky.
Now the two biggest recruits in the state have their sights set on team accomplishments as Huff\u2019s Glenbard West and Schutt\u2019s Yorkville Christian are state title contenders in their respective class.
History shows us the Class of 2022 will not produce as many Division I players as past years. But what the Class of 2022 has provided, due to various factors over the past couple of years, are a number of \u201crecruiting steals\u201d for several college programs. Thus, it\u2019s difficult to choose the single biggest.
There was a reason Young\u2019s AJ Casey was so highly ranked and gathered up so many high-major offers early on. Casey, who played July banged up with an injured hand, could prove to be a steal for Miami.
Young\u2019s Xavier Amos, a talented 6-8 forward with a projectable body and a high ceiling, could prove to be a big steal for Rashon Burno and Northern Illinois down the road. Amos is poised to take another big step with the confidence he gained last season.
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Princeton landing Glenbard West\u2019s versatile Cade Pierce, arguably the most under-appreciated prospect in the class, is certainly a steal worth mentioning. Pierce is as versatile as they come, boasts a winning mentality and an appetite for getting stops on defense.
Might Denver out of the Summit League have snuck in and stole a true high-ceiling prospect in the still blossoming 6-5 Justin Mullins of Oak Park?
But the biggest recruiting steal in the state is Normal\u2019s Zach Cleveland to Liberty. The athletic, high-motored Cleveland has the potential to be a monster in the ASUN Conference where Liberty plays and a year ago won 23 games and reached the NCAA Tournament.
If Cleveland can fine-tune and improve his jump shot to maximize his offensive potential? Look out, ASUN.
Cleveland\u2019s recruitment was just beginning to heat up this summer when he pulled the trigger early and committed in the middle of June to coach Ritchie McKay.
Prior to his five-year run at Illinois, coach John Groce enjoyed success in the Mid-American Conference at Ohio, fueled by a catalyst from Chicago \u2013\u2013 Seton Academy\u2019s DJ Cooper. Groce and Cooper teamed together for a ton of fun and two NCAA Tournament runs.
Groce has returned to his MAC roots, and he came back to the Chicago area for another dynamic point guard in Tavari Johnson. When it comes to the right level, fit and style, the 6-0 senior from Lyons found an ideal situation with Akron.
While some higher level programs were scared off by Johnson\u2019s slender frame and size, the slick point guard has a vintage all-around game. He can handle, pass and score the basketball and brings tremendous feel and vision to the position.
The new star arrival, Ty Rodgers, who recently transferred to Thornton from Grand Blanc, Mich., is instantly the best uncommitted player in the state.
The 6-6 forward is among the nation\u2019s top 100 players and has trimmed his list to Alabama, Illinois, Memphis and Michigan State.
The best unsigned senior who has been around longer than a couple of months is New Trier\u2019s Jackson Munro.
The 6-9 senior\u2019s game has evolved after making such positive strides late last season. Loyola, Dartmouth, Toledo, Lipscomb and Bucknell remain in the hunt from a lengthy list of offers that Munro received this summer.
Here is the complete list of area players expected to sign with Division I schools during the early signing period, which runs from Nov. 10 to Nov. 17.<\/em>
Player, High school, College<\/strong>
Xavier Amos, Young, NIU<\/strong>
Dylan Arnett, DePaul Prep, Wisconsin-Milwaukee<\/strong>
Robbie Avila, Oak Forest, Indiana<\/strong> State<\/strong>
AJ Casey, Young, Miami<\/strong>
Bobby Durkin, Glenbard West, Army<\/strong>
Kolby Gilles, St. Ignatius, Air<\/strong> Force<\/strong>
Braden Huff, Glenbard West, Gonzaga<\/strong>
Tavari Johnson, Lyons, Akron<\/strong>
Nick Martinelli, Glenbrook South, Elon<\/strong>
Bryce Moore, Carmel, Niagra<\/strong>
Justin Mullins, Oak Park, Denver<\/strong>
Cooper Noard, Glenbrook South, Cornell<\/strong>
Trey Pettigrew, Kenwood, Nevada<\/strong>
Caden Pierce, Glenbard West, Princeton<\/strong>
Ryan Renfro, Glenbard West, Army<\/strong>
Jaden Schutt, Yorkville, Duke<\/strong>
Ben VanderWal, Timothy Christian, Furman<\/strong>
Damari Wheeler-Thomas, Larkin, North Dakota State<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Filed under:This recruiting cycle was unlike any other. It has been an extremely tough road for so many reasons for the seniors in the Class of 2022 over the last 18 months. This recruiting cycle was unlike any other. It\u2019s been an extremely tough road for so many reasons for the seniors in the Class of 2022 over the past<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t