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On Thursday, Makur Maker announced he would be making his college choice next week.
Change of plans, as Maker has instead opted to pick his school now, announcing he would attend Howard today on Twitter.
I was the 1st to announce my visit to Howard & other started to dream “what if”. I need to make the HBCU movement real so that others will follow. I hope I inspire guys like Mikey Williams to join me on this journey. I am committing to Howard U & coach Kenny Blakeney #MakerMob
— Makur Maker (@MakurMaker) July 3, 2020
A 6-11 center out of Hillcrest Prep (AZ), Maker was down to Howard, Kentucky, UCLA and Memphis before picking the Bison. He’s ranked 17th nationally in the 2020 class by 247 Sports Composite. He also held offers from Oregon, Alabama, USC and Memphis.
As Maker alluded to, this is a big win for the HBCU movement, which has been picking up steam this offseason. There’s still a chance Maker opts to stay in the 2020 NBA Draft (he’s still testing the waters), but regardless, this is still a major win for HBCUs and their pursuit of elite high school recruits.
For Kentucky, this is a bit of a loss since Maker appeared to be the only other frontcourt player that John Calipari was recruiting for next season. With Olivier Sarr’s eligibility case still pending, the Wildcats really could have used another true center on the roster, regardless of whether Sarr is eligible or not. Currently, there is no one else on the roster over 6-9, but Kentucky never appeared to be the leader for Maker.
The biggest loser in this decision is UCLA, who looked like the favorite for the California native going into the final stretch of this recruitment, if Maker actually attends school. He even said the Bruins were the leader recently, though most experts still expected Maker to ultimately end up going pro this year.