Kansas commit Vick gets positive reviews

By Gary Bedore     May 24, 2015

Kansas University basketball recruiting.

Basketball notes. …

LaGerald Vick, who has committed to play basketball at Kansas University — likely starting in the 2015-16 season — continues to compete on this spring and summer’s Under Armour Association Circuit.

Vick, a 6-foot-5 senior combo guard from Douglass High in Memphis and Team Thad AAU, scored 28 points against the Indiana Hoosiers and 23 versus the Juice All-Stars in victories Saturday in West Chester, New York.

His 28-point outing came off 10-of-23 shooting, including 4-of-10 from three and 4-of-4 from the line. He also had four rebounds and two assists. Versus Juice All-Stars, he hit nine of 11 shots, including 4-of-6 shooting from three and 1-of-2 from the line.

“Vick firing on all cylinders. Pretty jump shot, active defender, can really create off dribble, pure scorer,” Rivals.com’s Eric Bossi wrote Saturday on Twitter.

On Friday, Vick scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in a tourney-opening victory over Supreme Court.

“LaGerald Vick was very, very good for Team Thad. The recent commitment to Kansas far outplayed his current ranking of No. 137 in the class of 2016 while going for 25 points and 10 rebounds (Friday),” Bossi wrote at Rivals.com. “A thin and lanky shooting guard, Vick can really create for himself off the dribble, has quickness and he can shoot it from deep. He had his jumper working, got to the rim a bit and scored whenever he wanted. Most likely, he will skip heading to prep school and end up at Kansas as a class of 2015 prospect but a final decision on that hasn’t been made.”

Maker update: Thon Maker’s guardian, Ed Smith, tells Zagsblog.com he hasn’t heard from KU “for a while.”

Maker is the 7-footer from Orangeville Prep in Mono, Ontario, who is talking about attending college second semester of the 2015-16 school year before entering the 2016 NBA Draft.

Smith said Indiana and Arizona State are talking about a year-and-a-half stay for Maker if he arrives in December.

“I don’t want to put a one-and-done on it. You finish high school, step one. When you’re ready and your body is ready for the pro game, step two,” mentor Smith told Zagsblog.com.

“There is no one-and-a-half year plan in place. It is when he is ready. If it takes 31/2 years then so be it. The feel is that if he went mid-year he would be more effective in Year 2 because he would have had the summer and the fall to get better,” Smith added.

KU has just one scholarship left in recruiting for this school year and is bringing in former Providence center Paschal Chukwu for a visit the first weekend of June.

Of Kentucky’s interest in the No. 9-rated Maker, Smith told Zagsblog: “Like Cal (John Calipari) said, when you’re ready to be recruited, call me. … Anybody would take him (at the semester break) knowing what the plan is.”

Cliff gained ‘knowledge’ at KU: Former KU forward Cliff Alexander, a popular interview target at the recent NBA Combine, will be selected No. 11 in the second round of in the upcoming NBA Draft, according to draftexpress.com. NBAdraft.net has the 6-foot-8 Alexander the ninth pick of the second round.

“I learned a lot of knowledge from coach (Bill) Self,” Alexander told SLAM Magazine, referring to his one season at KU. He was held out of eight games because of an NCAA issue. “I learned the history of basketball and was just a sponge to everything that he told me.”

Alexander is working out in Chicago in preparation for the June draft.

“My skill set … I need to get my ballhandling where it needs to be and get a more consistent jump shot,” he told SLAM Magazine of what he’s working on. “I’m going to surprise teams with my physical ability. I didn’t really get a chance to show that at Kansas. A better Cliff Alexander, that’s all.”

ESPN’s Chad Ford’s most recent mock draft does not have Alexander going in the first round. He has Kelly Oubre Jr., dropping to No. 17 of Round One.

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