Chicago prep guard pays KU a visit

By Gary Bedore     May 14, 2012

Kansas University may soon be adding a reinforcement to its backcourt for the 2012-13 men’s basketball season.

Milton Doyle, a 6-foot-4, 185-pound senior combo guard out of Chicago’s Marshall High, arrived on KU’s campus Monday for an official recruiting visit. The first-team Chicago Sun Times All-Public League selection and third-team Chicago Tribune all-stater recently decommitted from Florida International following the firing of coach Isiah Thomas.

Doyle, who averaged 19 points, seven rebounds and just under five assists per game his senior season, also has Nebraska and Colorado State on his list and recently made a recruiting trip to Bradley, which has since filled its allotment of scholarships. His mom, Lisa Green, tells Rivals.com that KU is her son’s “No. 1 dream school” and, while nothing is official yet, he doesn’t plan to make any other campus visits.

“I call him the quiet assassin,” Marshall coach Henry Cotton told the Chicago Sun Times. “He just goes about his job relentlessly. If he had waited (until second semester), he could have gone anywhere he wanted to, but he was loyal to the people who showed him interest (FIU) when no one else did. That’s the way he is.”

Cotton said the lanky Doyle, who is known for his slashing ability, “is a great player. If had played a little bit more and been out on the circuit a little bit more, he definitely could have played in the McDonald’s All-American game. He’s got natural talent. There is nothing that he can’t do on the floor. He can defend, he can pass, he can shoot it, he can drive to the basket and he can create for others, he can make people around him better and he can make himself better.”

Doyle, who last month scored 20 points in the Chicago Public League all-star game, is unranked nationally by Rivals.com. He missed his entire junior season after transferring from Chicago Tilden to Chicago Marshall because of a broken wrist. He did not play AAU ball in July last year, instead concentrating on his academic work.

“Doyle is the ultimate sleeper, an underrated talent who fits the cliché ‘his best basketball is ahead of him’ perfectly. It’s true,” wrote Joe Henricksen of the Chicago Sun Times. “Doyle is just scratching the surface. He’s long, wiry, active, extremely athletic and his skill level has improved the more he plays.

“Doyle remained a rather unknown (his senior year). Florida International snuck in and nabbed a commitment from Doyle last fall before the kid’s talent blew the top off and he became a hot commodity. Thomas, however, was fired following the season and Doyle was back on the open market. … You just don’t typically find a talent this late in the recruiting game like Doyle, who has tremendous upside and untapped potential,” Henricksen added.

Noted ILprepbullseye.com: “(He is) a stellar athlete who was among top five players in Chicago Public League based on performance this past season.  Excels at slashing and has a tremendous mid-range game.”

His mom figures KU will land a commitment.

“I would say that it’s his choice. Kansas has already offered a scholarship, but he wanted to go see the school and see how things are at Kansas,” she said. “Milton just wants to spend a little time at Kansas and see what it’s all about. Kansas will be his third official visit (besides FIU, Bradley), so he’s got two visits left. My guess is he’s going to be sold on Kansas, so I don’t think he’ll use his final two visits, but I don’t know for sure.”

KU is also awaiting word from University of South Carolina sophomore Damontre Harris, a 6-9 forward who is down to KU and Florida. Anrio Adams, a 6-3 senior combo guard from Seattle’s Rainier Beach High, said again this week he plans to arrive at KU in June for summer school. He’s committed to KU, but has not yet signed a letter-of-intent as he awaits his latest standardized test score.

“I Will Be Wearing #2 For Kansas! This Year,” Adams wrote on Facebook on Monday.

Agents: KU senior guard Tyshawn Taylor, who graduated Sunday, has signed with Excel Sports Management and agent Jeff Schwartz. Excel also represents former KU players Paul Pierce, Mario Chalmers, Nick Collison and Cole Aldrich. Thomas Robinson, who is leaving KU after his junior year, has signed with Dutt Sports Services and agent Tony Dutt. Dutt also represents former KU players Marcus and Markieff Morris.

Transfer talk: Former Texas Tech forward Terran Petteway has decided to transfer to Nebraska. Petteway played 13.1 minutes per game for the Red Raiders last season. … Julius Mays, a point guard from Wright State, has transferred to Kentucky, where he’s immediately eligible following his graduation.

PREV POST

Missouri lawmaker's vow: No Jayhawk license tags on his watch

NEXT POST

40622Chicago prep guard pays KU a visit