The next step in the interesting journey that has been Flory Bidunga’s arrival in the United States and emergence on the basketball scene should become more clear over the next couple months.
The Kokomo H.S. (Kokomo, Ind.) rising senior was out in Las Vegas over the last few days and spoke to multiple outlets about the status of his college recruitment.
The consistent message from the Democratic Republic of the Congo product was that he would like to have his decision finalized before he starts his senior year of high school in early August.
Indiana, Michigan, Kansas, Auburn, Florida and Cincinnati have been some of the main schools involved to this point with the national top-10 5-star center.
That doesn’t mean there won’t be more twists and turns. Although Bidunga is nearing a decision, it was also reported on Tuesday that Duke has entered the mix, and Kentucky is remains in the picture as well.
Bidunga has visited IU multiple times over the last year. He came for Hoosier Hysteria, along with high profile games against North Carolina and Purdue. The IU staff would no doubt like for him to come back for a full length official visit as his recruitment comes into focus over the summer. There are no visits scheduled at this point.
Along with Montverde center Derik Queen, Bidunga is one of two big men in the 2024 class that IU has been involved with for well over a year and has a shot to land. Although they are very different players, it seems unlikely that the Hoosiers would land both of them.
Indiana has a pretty good story to tell high school big men right now. IU coach Mike Woodson can point to how Trayce Jackson-Davis developed under his direction. Also, Kel’el Ware may only be at IU for a year, which creates an immediate opening for the next 5-star prospect.
The 6-foot-10 Bidunga led Kokomo to the Class 4A State Finals as a junior. He was named Indiana Boys Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year after averaging 20.2 points, 13.8 rebounds, 4.5 blocks, 1.6 assists and 1.2 steals in 28.0 minutes per contest.
He continued his dominant play out at the Pangos All-American Camp in Las Vegas. There he was named co-Most Outstanding Player while averaging 13.8 points and 10.5 rebounds in 25.8 minutes per contest, while shooting 83.9 percent from the field.
MORE TDH COVERAGE OF BIDUNGA:
– Flory Bidunga expanding his skillset as he enters spring AAU action (April 2023)
– Flory Bidunga’s athleticism has college coaches enamored (Dec. 2022)
– What’s the story with Flory? (Aug. 2022)
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