Trendon Watford Includes IU in His Final Four — But is He Serious About the Hoosiers?

It is never a bad thing to be included in the final four list of a five-star recruit.

You likely know Trendon Watford’s story by now.  He’s the younger brother of former IU star Christian and a five-star recruit from Alabama.  The younger Watford spent a lot of time in Bloomington during Christian’s college career, and recently shared his favorite memory from his childhood:

https://twitter.com/Trendon_2/status/1072231238939930625

Yes, Bloomington holds a special place in Trendon’s heart.  But does he want to go to school there?

That could be a different story.

According to 247Sports, Watford is ranked as the No. 27 overall player in the Class of 2019 and the No. 1 player from the state of Alabama.

Today the 6-foot-9 forward from Mountain Brook, Alabama announced on Twitter the final four schools that he is considering:

https://twitter.com/Trendon_2/status/1073695231944601601

Alabama and Memphis have been the presumptive leaders here for months.  The Tide hold the home state advantage, and the Tigers seem to have the deepest relationships with the family.

But where do the Hoosiers stand?  Trendon spoke about that with Rivals today after he announced his finalists.

Indiana: “It is like a second home to me. I have been up their multiple times. My brother (Christian Watford) played there and there is a big family connection. I love what Coach Archie Miller was saying during my in-home visit. I just love what he is doing now.”

Certainly nice things to hear about IU, but some believe Watford is only including the Hoosiers as a finalist as a courtesy because of the family ties and his affinity for the school.  Moreover, he was supposed to visit Indiana last weekend, but the trip never materialized.  He also addressed that in the Rivals piece.

“I was trying to visit there for their game against Louisville but I ended up having a game but we just having to plan out a time according to my season,” he said. “We will find a date, though.”

That sounds convincing enough.  Ultimately an official visit to IU is the thing to watch here.  Neither side is interested in wasting each other’s time here.  If it happens, it will be a recruitment worth monitoring more closely.  Until then, the working assumption will have to be that the younger Watford is looking to build his own legacy elsewhere.

Watford hasn’t addressed whether charting his own course plays into his decision at all.  If he really is considering Indiana, he likely sees a class of 2019 situation that could work.  Assuming Keion Brooks, Jr. commits to IU, Watford would join him and Trayce Jackson-Davis as five stars in the class.

Watford’s game is closer to Brooks, Jr., but he is really a hybrid between the two, with a better perimeter game than Jackson-Davis and a stronger frame to play in the paint than Brooks, Jr.  The trio could surely all be on the floor at the same time with games that compliment each other.

But for now, there is no sense in dreaming about what could be.

Watford has taken official visits to Memphis (Oct. 4) and LSU (Nov. 2). He will take his third official visit to Alabama next month (Jan. 4).

His favorite childhood memory was the stuff that dreams are made of.  If Trendon schedules an official visit where it happened, then IU fans should begin to imagine another dream scenario.

Until then, all bets are on Alabama and Memphis.

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