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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Friday / March 29.
  • Blair (N.J.) Academy has already seen two players commit to Division 1 programs this fall with point guard Matt Turner picking Santa Clara and big man Deng Gak choosing Miami.

    Now wing Anthony Mack could be next in line as he may make a decision in the coming days.

    The 6-foot-6 Mack, who can play the 1, 2 and 3, has a top five of Wyoming, Georgia, Villanova, St. Louis and Missouri, but Florida and Miami are also showing interest.

    “I’m actually looking to decide [this] week, either Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday,” he said Sunday evening by phone. “I’m either going to decide to commit to one of those schools or I might open up my recruitment.

    “I think I’m more likely going to commit to one of those schools.”

    Kevin Knox enjoyed his weekend official visit to Duke and is still planning a winter decision.

    “It was real good,” the 6-foot-8 Class of 2017 small forward from Tampa (FL) Catholic and E1T1 said. “They have coached a lot of people that play like me, so that’s basically their message.”

    Knox said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and his staff compared him to former Duke great Grant Hill and current Pacers star Paul George, whom Coach K coached with the gold medal-winning Olympic team. Knox is currently projected as the No. 10 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft per DraftExpress.com.

    Duke was Knox’s first official visit — and the only one prior to the NCAA early signing period Nov. 9-16.

    Mohamed Bamba, the 7-footer from the PSA Cardinals and the Westtown (PA) School, plans to commit in the spring and has no other visits currently planned after taking an official to Texas this weekend, a source close to Bamba said.

    The Harlem native plans to wait to see how some of the dominoes fall during the early signing period Nov. 9-16.

    Bamba has already taken unofficial visits to Harvard (Sept. 24) and Kentucky (Oct. 14), and an official to Michigan in early September.

    The 2018 Mock NBA Draft is up on DraftExpress.com and Arizona-bound 7-footer DeAndre Ayton is the projected No. 1 pick, followed by uncommitted 7-footer Mohamed Bamba of the PSA Cardinals and the Westtown (PA) School.

    Ayton, a native of the Bahamas who’s a senior at Hillcrest Prep (AZ), would be the first No. 1 overall pick out of Arizona. And head coach Sean Miller and his staff explicitly made that pitch to Ayton before he committed in September.

    One veteran NBA scout said then that Ayton needed to improve his work ethic going forward.

    “Right now going into 2018 he will be in the discussion for a Top 5 selection but his game and approach have to drastically improve,” the scout said. “He is very immature and his game currently reflects that. He is a talent but he needs to grow up physically, emotionally and mentally with his overall game.”

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