Keion Brooks, Jr. is Nearing a Decision

Many had expected that a decision would have been reached by now.

Put us in that camp.

Perhaps class of 2019 five-star Keion Brooks, Jr. has, for all practical intents and purposes, made his decision.  But with a hectic travel schedule over the last month that has included trips to Hawaii, South Dakota and West Virginia, there has been little time to put the finishing touches on that choice and make a formal announcement.

Brooks, Jr. moved away from his family this year to attend La Lumiere in LaPorte, Indiana, which likely makes it more difficult to consult with those closest to him and close out the process.

The Fort Wayne, Indiana native gave an interview with Tipton Edits on Thursday evening to provide an update on the latest with his recruitment.

What might be a clue about where the process stands is the fact that Brooks, Jr. is involved with Tipton Edits right now.  If you are not familiar, Tipton Edits is a business that makes the graphics for commitments and other announcements that are often seen on Twitter and other forms of social media.

Could this interview be a “tell” that an announcement is imminent?

Perhaps, but for now Brooks, Jr. is still holding on to the notion that he is considering all of his final six.

Brooks, Jr. took his first visit to UCLA and says that he is still “technically” considering them.  With the recent firing of Steve Alford, the Bruins have gone from unlikely to no chance.

North Carolina and Kentucky are the biggest threats to Indiana here.  Brooks, Jr. spoke highly of both programs and they have long been believed to be the top contenders other than IU.

Michigan State was the first national power to recruit Brooks, Jr. seriously.  As it stands now, the Spartans for Brooks, Jr. are similar to Indiana for Trendon Watford.  In other words, if a visit to East Lansing actually happens it will be time to believe that MSU is still in contention.  Don’t forget, it was Michigan State that cancelled a previously scheduled Brooks, Jr. official visit.  You don’t do that with a five-star recruit unless you have a very good reason.

Brooks, Jr. has one official visit remaining, and he indicated that if he uses it, it will be at Michigan State.

There was no mention of Purdue, and with no official visit planned there, the Boilermakers are out of this one.

Of course Brooks, Jr. had several nice things to say about Indiana, including his perception of the official visit and how Trayce Jackson-Davis has been recruiting him.

He also indicated that a decision should be coming relatively soon.

“It’s still kind of up in the air, but I don’t want to drag it out too much longer.  I’m getting close to almost making a decision.  I’m not going to drag it out all the way until April.”

After a tournament this weekend, La Lumiere is playing closer to home for the rest of the month of January.  That should allow the 6-foot-8 wing plenty of time to finalize his decision and make an announcement.

If this is still an active recruitment, we believe it is down to IU, Kentucky and North Carolina.

We gave our reasoning for why Brooks, Jr. will end up choosing the Hoosiers a couple months ago.  That was weeks before the “Crystal Ball” predictions started dropping for Indiana.  Nothing has changed in the interim to make us believe otherwise.

SPEAKING OF TRENDON WATFORD

Tipton also caught up with Alabama five-star Trendon Watford earlier in the week.  As you likely know, Watford is the younger brother of former IU star Christian Watford, and he has included IU in his final four schools.

Watford indicated that he spoke with Brooks, Jr. over the weekend about playing at Indiana.  The two recruits were playing at the same tournament in South Dakota.

You can read our assessment of Watford’s recruitment here.

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