Kansas basketball head coach Bill Self and his staff received some unfortunate news on the recruiting front this week. Yesterday, it was reported by JayhawkSlant and multiple sources that Cooper Flagg – the No. 1 recruit in the 2024 class who many are calling a generational talent – would not be visiting Lawrence this weekend for Late Night in the Phog as originally planned.
Flagg has long been considered a heavy Duke lean, but Self and staff had made progress in his recruitment over the summer, enough to land a visit from the talented 6-f0ot-8 forward.
Flagg is coming off a visit to UCONN and is scheduled to visit Duke Oct. 20-22.
With Flagg canceling his visit to KU with no rescheduled date, it’s fair to assume that the Jayhawks are out of the running for the ballyhooed prospect. However, KU is still in on some of the best prospects in the 2024 class.
They’ve already landed commitments from five-star center Flory Bidunga – who will be in attendance for Late Night – as well as four-star guard Labaron Philon.
They’re also still in contention for top players such as shooting guard Dylan Harper, shooting guard Tre Johnson, small forward Liam McNeeley and others.
One player who is high on the staff’s radar is Rakease Passmore.
The four-star small forward out of Lincolnton, North Carolina, is ranked as the No. 36-best player in the 2024 class according to Rivals.com. He recently canceled his planned visit to Arkansas and is now set to join Bidunga and others at Late Night this weekend.
A commitment from Passmore would likely vault KU’s 2024 class into the top five in the country.
While Flagg canceling his visit is definitely a bummer given how talented he is, it was always a long shot that he was going to pick anyone other than Duke.
The Jayhawks have already built a nice 2024 class and will likely add at least one or two more players that will make the group one of the best in the country.
High school prospects can finalize their verbal commitments by signing their letters of intent starting Nov. 8 during the NCAA’s early signing period.