April 2020 High School Wiretap

Jalen Hood-Schifino Decommits From Pittsburgh

Jul 28, 2020 1:14 AM

Jalen Hood-Schifino announced that he will decommit from Pittsburgh and re-open his recruiting.

Hood-Schifino is ranked No. 23 in ESPN's top 60 for the 2022 class.

Hood-Schifino is a top-5 player at the shooting guard position in his class. 

"Now that I have reopened the process, I will have a chance to build relationships with other coaches and see other programs. I rushed the process only being a sophomore. I'm still a long way from entering college. It's going to be very important who I play with and what will be the best system for me," said Hood-Schifino.

Jeff Borzello & Paul Biancardi/ESPN

Tags: Jalen Hood-Schifino, Pittsburgh Panthers, High School, High School Recruiting, NCAA, NCAA Commitment

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Jermaine O'Neal, Tracy McGrady Announce Plans To Start Agency

Jul 20, 2020 11:18 AM

Tracy McGrady and Jermaine O'Neal are opening a player representation agency this fall called Seven1 Sports Group and Entertainment.

McGrady and O'Neal, who are both 41 and live in Texas, believe they can offer young players wisdom from their experience in the NBA.

“We think it’s needed, and we have a passion for it,” McGrady said. “We’re around kids every single day because we have youth programs. It just makes sense. We see the lack of information that these kids are getting, so we would be doing a disservice to our people if we don’t lend our expertise of what we know and help guide them. This is a calling that we have.”

O’Neal intends to take the National Basketball Players Association test in January to become a registered NBA agent and hold partner status alongside McGrady. McGrady will likely step away from his broadcasting role with ESPN.

“Make no mistake,” O’Neal said, “this is very personal.”

O'Neal has built relationships with several top draft prospects at his Drive Nation sports complex in Irving, Texas. R.J. Hampton, Tyrese Maxey and Jahmi’us Ramsey came through Drive Nation, as did Cade Cunningham.

“There’s no magic wand for this,” O’Neal said. “We’re not trying to say we’re the magic wand. But we’re going to be different. You can’t name another pair of people who have had the level of success and the ups and downs that we’ve had in our careers.”

McGrady and O'Neal were both represented by Arn Tellem during their playing careers.

“At the end of the day, they can’t get all the players," McGrady said of his new rivals. "Obviously it’s going to take us some time to get our feet wet and really understand how this thing works. But we’re not intimidated by anybody. We know there’s going to be a lot of people trying to poke holes into this.”

Marc Stein/New York Times

Tags: High School, NCAA, NBA

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Caleb Houstan Reclassifies Into Class Of 2021

Jul 18, 2020 11:55 AM

Caleb Houstan, the No. 3 prospect in the Class of 2022, will reclassify into the 2021 class.

"Being at Montverde and playing for Team Canada at the FIBA level has helped prepare me for that. The best decision for me is to go to college in 2021. That will help me get to next level and eventually where I want to go, which is the NBA," said Houstan.

Houstan averaged 23 points in last summer's FIBA Americas U16 Championship for Canada.

Houstan currently has 14 offers, including from Duke, Gonzaga, North Carolina, Michigan, Virginia, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Texas Tech, Maryland and Seton Hall.

Jonathan Givony/ESPN

Tags: Caleb Houstan, High School, High School Recruiting

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Langston Love Commits To Baylor

Jul 15, 2020 1:45 PM

Langston Love has committed to Baylor. Love is the no. 22 prospect in the incoming class of 2021.

Love took official visits to Stanford and Texas last fall, but he also had UCLA, Kansas, Arkansas, Villanova, Illinois, Texas Tech, Texas A&M and Oklahoma State on his list.

"The reason I chose Baylor is because it is a Christian school, with high-caliber academics," Love told ESPN. "I also have developed a great relationship with the coaching staff and I'm impressed with the way they develop their guards."

Love played behind the likes of Cade Cunningham (Oklahoma State) and Scottie Barnes (Florida State) at Montverde last season.

Jeff Borzello, Paul Biancardi/ESPN

Tags: Langston Love, Baylor Bears, High School, NCAA, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, NBA Draft General, NCAA Commitment

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