For the most part, the 2021 recruiting cycle for Indiana men’s basketball has been stagnant.
Archie Miller and the Indiana coaching staff are not actually being stagnant in their recruiting efforts, but when it comes to commitments, things have been slow.
The lone 2021 pledge comes from four-star, 6-foot-9 center Logan Duncomb of Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati. Duncomb committed over five months ago, on April 7.
Typically, Miller is quick to land the majority of his recruiting class by the early fall.
In the 2018 class, four of the five total players were committed to Indiana by Sept. 11, 2017. Just a year ago, Miller had three of his four players in the 2020 class committed by Sept. 2, 2019.
It should be noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has played a major role in slowing down kids’ recruitments with limited opportunities to take visits to different schools and the inability to play a normal AAU schedule.
Additionally, Indiana would be at two commitments for the 2021 cycle had Khristian Lander not reclassified to 2020 back in May.
Regardless of Indiana being at only one commit right now, there could be good opportunity to land a player or two in the next month or so. Seniors often like to commit before their high school season begins, and with most states typically starting their season around Thanksgiving, the calendar is reaching a point where the number of commitments nationwide should start increasing.
Again, while Indiana’s number of commitments is small, the staff has been evidently been very active. Let’s take a look at some of Indiana’s top remaining targets and where things stand.
Top Targets
Trey Kaufman
Kaufman is, without a doubt, Indiana’s top priority in this recruiting class. A combination of being from southern Indiana, a serious need for post players, a top 50 national ranking, and the time investment the staff has put into him, indicates he is practically a must-get for Indiana.
The Sellersburg, Indiana native and Silver Creek High School standout is considered the No. 41 player in the country. He cut his list down to five schools on Sept. 8, including Indiana, Purdue, North Carolina, Virginia, and Indiana State.
Of the five, it looks to be a three-horse race between Indiana, North Carolina, and Virginia. Indiana has been recruiting Kaufman the longest and has hosted him for a number of visits.
Kaufman unofficially visited Virginia and North Carolina a few days before he cut his list to five. The appeal of playing for a national power in either North Carolina or Virginia, who have each won a national title in the last five years, could be a pull factor for Kaufman, too.
It does look like Indiana is the front-runner, though. The only two experts to log predictions in the 247Sports Crystal Ball predicted Kaufman will commit to Indiana.
Kaufman will announce his decision this Friday at 6 p.m on the radio at 98.5 WHJI FM.
Blake Wesley
Wesley is the only other available in-state option that Indiana seems to be interested in for the 2021 class.
He is from South Bend and attends South Bend Riley, the same high school as former Hoosier and recent transfer Damezi Anderson.
Wesley is a 6-foot-4 shooting guard with lots of athleticism and upside to his game and is ranked as the No. 118 player in the country.
Indiana made Wesley’s recent list-cut of 12 remaining schools, but it seems as if Indiana isn’t in the running anymore.
Notre Dame and Purdue are the likely favorites for Wesley’s talents.
Aminu Mohammed
Mohammed could be right up there with Kaufman as Indiana’s most sought-after recruit in the 2021 class.
Mohammed, a native of Nigeria, currently playing his high school basketball at Greenwood Laboratory School in Missouri, and is a top-tier prospect.
He is listed as a 6-foot-4 small forward and a five-star recruit, also being listed as the No. 14 overall player in the country.
If Indiana were to land Mohammed, he would be the highest rated out-of-state recruit that Miller has ever landed for IU.
Indiana has recruited Mohammed as hard as anyone, and seems to be in good position, as the sole Crystal Ball prediction from 247Sports has Mohammed picking Indiana.
The other top suitors for Mohammed would be Louisville, Maryland, Georgetown, Kansas State, among others.
Mason Miller
For some time, it looked as if Miller’s recruitment was over before it started with Memphis being the former heavy favorite. But, his father, former NBA champion Mike Miller, stepped down from being an assistant coach for the Tigers in June.
With his dad no longer affiliated with Memphis, that opened up the possibility of Miller going elsewhere. Indiana looks to be in the thick of it to land Miller along with Ohio State and Creighton being the top competitors for him.
Miller is ranked as a four-star player and the No. 66 overall prospect in the country out of Germantown, Tennessee.
He would be a very valued asset for the Hoosiers with Miller’s 6-foot-9 stature as a power forward with strong shooting ability. As stated earlier, Indiana desperately needs more size on the roster in the 2021-2022 season.
