Marques Bolden, the No. 1-ranked American big man in the Class of 2016, won’t announce his college decision this week at the McDonald’s All-American Game but won’t wait until his birthday on April 17th, either.
“I’m not going to wait that long,” he told Ben Roberts of Kentucky.com. “That’s super late.”
The 6-foot-10 Bolden out of DeSoto (TX) is down to Kentucky, Duke and TCU.
Kentucky coach John Calipari visited with Bolden on Thursday.
“We talked about a lot,” Bolden told Roberts. “We really got a lot out of that conversation, and it really meant a lot for him to lose a game like that [to Indiana] and still be worried about me and to come and see me. We talked about, if I were to go there, how I would play. We talked about his plan for me.”
Kentucky has a loaded recruiting class full of bigs coming in, including Bam Adebayo, Sacha-Killeya Jones and Wenyen Gabriel. The Wildcats also return Tai Wynyard and Isaac Humphries and likely Marcus Lee and Derek Willis.
Bolden said incoming point guard De’Aaron Fox had been in his ear at the McDonald’s practices in Chicago.
“I’d probably have to say Fox is doing the most,” Bolden said. “We’re both from Texas, and I’ve barely had the opportunity to play with him. I’ve always played against him, but we’ve never really been on the same team.
What does five-star center Marques Bolden like about UK? A lot, apparently.#BBN #WeAreUK pic.twitter.com/u8YJESdHE4
– KSTV (@KSTV_Sports) March 29, 2016
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Meantime, Duke brings in forwards Harry Giles and Jayson Tatum and is seeking a redshirt for big man Amile Jefferson.
Giles says he’s been recruiting Bolden to Duke.
“Next year I think we’re gonna have a great team with the guys that will be there and the class that we’ve got coming in,” Giles wrote on his USA Today blog. “I’ve definitely been hitting my man Marques (Bolden) telling him to come on to Duke with us. I need that! I feel pretty good about getting him. He’s a smart guy and I hope he’ll make that smart decision to come with us.”
Meantime, TCU just hired former Pitt coach Jamie Dixon, which could complicate their chances.
“It’s not the same at all, because their whole staff left,” he told Roberts, adding that he was looking forward to speaking more with the new coach.
Bolden will play in the McDonald’s All-American Game on Wednesday in Chicago, which features several recruits from both Kentucky and Duke.
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NMarques Bolden, the No. 1-ranked American big man in the Class of 2016, won’t announce his college decision this week at the McDonald’s All-American Game but won’t wait until his birthday on April 17th, either.
