Karl Towns Jr. is rooming with Andrew Wiggins at the Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Ore., but don’t expect the New Jersey native to recruit the Canadian hard to Kentucky.
“I haven’t talked to him about Kentucky at all,” Towns Jr. told Larry Vaught. “He has so much talent, but we are good friends. I just wish him the best for any school he picks. I want to let him enjoy the time here and just be friends and talk basketball and play video games. Stuff like that.”
Wiggins is the top prospect in the Class of 2013 and the projected No. 1 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, so even if he picks Kentucky, he and Towns Jr. will likely never share the court together.
The 7-foot-1 Towns Jr. reclassified to the Class of 2014 and declared for Kentucky last December. The St. Joe’s-Metuchen star is coach John Calipari’s lone commit for that class.
Internet rumors had circulated that the 6-foot-7 Wiggins would announce his college choice at the Hoop Summit, which will air on ESPN2 on Saturday at 7 p.m.
But Wiggins has visits slated next week with North Carolina coach Roy Williams, Kansas coach Bill Self and Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton, so any announcement will likely come sometime after that. Calipari last met with Wiggins before the McDonald’s All-American Game.
As for the Hoop Summit, Wiggins and Towns Jr. are teammates on the World Team that will take on the USA team that features three Kentucky commits in Aaron and Andrew Harrison and Julius Randle.
“They are all so talented. I would not be surprised at all if I go there and none of them are still there (because they’ve gone to the NBA),” Towns Jr. told Vaught.
Towns Jr. and St. Joe’s-Metuchen lost the New Jersey Tournament of Champions final to Syracuse-bound forward Tyler Roberson and Roselle Catholic in a game in which Towns Jr. seemed satisfied to play on the perimeter and managed just seven points on 3-of-12 shooting to go with five rebounds and three blocks.
If he can continue to improve his post game and take advantage of his size and strength, he could one day wind up in the NBA, where Wiggins, Randle and the Harrisons seem headed after one season in Lexington.
“With NBA scouts here, it’s always good to start your future early and show what you can do daily,” Towns Jr. told Vaught. “It will be fun to play against next year’s Kentucky Wildcats and know I will be there the next year. They will set the tone before me. But Saturday I will play my best against them and hopefully we will come out with a win.”
**For more stories on Andrew Wiggins, click here.
Wiggins Photo: Kelly Kline / Jordan Brand
