Five-star senior Makur Maker announced his engagement to Howard on Friday morning, becoming the top-ranked prospect for committing to a historically black college or university since the ESPN recruitment database began in 2007.
Maker chose Bison over UCLA, although Kentucky and Memphis were also on their final list of four.
“I was the first to announce my visit to Howard and others who began to dream ‘what if’,” Maker wrote on Twitter. “I need to make the HBCU movement real for others to follow me. I hope to inspire guys like Mikey Williams to join me on this journey. I commit to Howard U and coach Kenny Blakeney.”
Maker visited Howard last fall during the same month, five-star guard Josh Christopher paid an official visit to Howard. Christopher finally became engaged to the state of Arizona.
“Many people are comfortable with familiarity. Children might say, ‘I would feel welcome that I am not just an athlete, I am part of a community,'” Ed Smith, Maker’s tutor, recently told ESPN. “In the visit to Howard, that was the main difference. Just for me, looking outside, he is part of the cloth. You are not just the athlete or the black athlete.”
Maker, a versatile 6-foot-11-foot player, is ranked 16th on the ESPN 100 by 2020. He also entered his name in the NBA draft, but is likely to retire if it is not expected to be a first round. collect. Maker is ranked 75 on the ESPN NBA Draft Ranking. There have been links between Maker and the G-League, but sources have told ESPN that it is not interested in pursuing that route.
Maker is the first five-star prospect to commit to an HBCU since the ESPN recruitment database began in 2007, and if he was selected in the NBA draft, he would be the first HBCU product since Kyle O’Quinn ( Norfolk State) in 2012. But in recent months, HBCUs have become more assertive in recruiting top-tier high school talent, especially in the 2021 and 2022 classes.
Blakeney, who took over Howard before last season, recently spoke to ESPN about the potential impact of a five-star prospect on an HBCU, and the importance of the prospect being successful.
“Wherever a five-star lands, we can’t mess it up,” Blakeney said. “If we screw it up, we may not have another chance to do it.”
Maker, the cousin of Detroit Pistons forward Thon Maker, was born in Kenya before moving to Australia. He moved to California in 2015. Maker averaged 14.7 points and 7.9 rebounds while shooting 73% on 2 points last spring and last summer with Dream Vision on the Adidas base circuit.
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