By ADAM ZAGORIA
Malaki Branham, the 6-foot-4, 175-pound shooting guard from St. Vincent-St. Mary’s (OH), is staying home for college.
And he got a shout out from LeBron James as a result.
Branham committed to Ohio State on Wednesday over offers from Alabama, Baylor, Cincinnati, Louisville, and Xavier, among others, prompting a Tweet from King James.
Congrats @MalakiBranham!!! OH-IO 🌰 https://t.co/Rx6hL9SuvO
— LeBron James (@KingJames) July 22, 2020
James was courted by Duke, North Carolina and Ohio State while at St. Vincent-St. Mary, and has said he would’ve chosen Ohio State had he gone to college.
According to 247Sports.com, Branham is ranked as the No. 5 shooting guard and No. 27 overall player in the Class of 2021.
New Beginnings✨ @TiptonEdits pic.twitter.com/emJrq8892e
— Malaki Branham🖤 (@MalakiBranham) July 22, 2020
Branham averaged nearly 20.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game as a junior during the 2019-20 season, leading Saint Vincent-Saint Mary’s to a 20-4 record. He was named first-team All-Ohio in Division II as a junior.
“Malaki Branham is an efficient elite talent who can score from all three levels,” said coach Dru Joyce II. “He’s an 88 percent free throw shooter so he’s hard to keep off the stat sheet. He has a high basketball IQ, understands team and is very coachable.”
He becomes Ohio State’s third commit in 2021 along with point guard Demetrius “Meechie” Johnson and power forward Kalen Etzler.
The Buckeyes now have the No. 2 recruiting class in 2021 behind Baylor, per 247Sports.com.
Ohio State now has the #2 Ranked Recruiting Class for 2021. pic.twitter.com/qy93fjWgGX
— Tipton Edits (@TiptonEdits) July 22, 2020
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