KU Jayhawks basketball offers scholarship to point guard recruit Desmond Claude
Desmond Claude, a 6-foot-5, 190-pound senior point guard from Putnam Science Academy in Oakdale, Connecticut, has been offered a men’s basketball scholarship by Kansas, he reported this week on Twitter.
Claude, who is ranked No. 122 in the recruiting class of 2022 by 247sports.com and No. 129 by Rivals.com, has also received offers from Kansas State, Xavier, Boston College, Boston University, Butler, California, Creighton, Louisville, Marquette, UMass, Memphis, Minnesota, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Providence, Rutgers, Illinois, South Carolina, Wisconsin and others.
Claude told Jayhawkslant.com he’s visited Louisville, Xavier, Rutgers and South Carolina. He said it’s “very possible that I visit Kansas.”
Claude received his Kansas offer on a recent Zoom call with KU head coach Bill Self and assistant Jeremy Case.
“Coach Self says there is a good opportunity and he wants a big point guard. Everything was sounding good on the Zoom call. Coach Self hasn’t seen me play (in-person) yet. Coach Self has seen me on film a lot though,” Claude said.
Claude described his game to Jake Weingarten of Stockrisers.com.
“I am a point guard who can score while making my teammates better. Very good decision-making and passing to the right guy depending on the situation. Also, I can consistently make the correct reads,” Claude said.
Of Claude, Weingarten writes: “Claude is a very underrated prospect who has great size at the guard spot, is also very versatile and is a problem when attacking the rim. I’d say his pace of play is also very intriguing to watch. It almost seems like he always knows exactly when to make what play. He’s one of the few prospects left that are currently ranked in the senior class and for that, he’s drawn the attention of several high-majors and has current plans to begin the visit process and move along in his recruitment,” Weingarten added.
The staff at prospectiveinsight.com wrote this about Claude: “A normally aggressive, skilled and efficient point guard with size, Claude was likely the best available long-term guard available in attendance (at a recent high school tourney). He embraces contact and frequently gets to the free throw line where he’s a solid shooter. He has good overall court vision and benefits from his positional size. Claude plays with a degree of patience and a high basketball IQ, as well. The Connecticut native generates steals through his mix of length, anticipation and deceptive lateral quickness. Claude plays fairly upright, which can appear stiff, at times. Claude should be a better rebounder overall, given his size, strength, and understanding. The Putnam Science star is a legitimate three-level scorer with court vision, while being able to function as a primary or secondary ball-handler, due to his size and court vision.”
Taylor Bowen on KU radar
KU is recruiting Taylor Bowen, a 6-7, 180-pound junior small forward from Brewster Academy in New Hampshire.
Bowen, the No. 29-rated player in the recruiting class of 2023 according to Rivals.com, also is considering Iowa, Arkansas, Duke, Providence and others.
“He’s a very dynamic prospect. He’s a modern-day 4 (power forward), that’s the best way to describe him. He’s got good size and length,” Weingarten of Stockrisers.com wrote of Bowen, a native of Egypt.
“Bowen shoots the ball from 40% from behind the arc and over 45% from the field. He’s also a defensive menace as he blocked over 2.5 shots per game. He proved his worth at Peach Jam this past summer. One week into the event, he was leading Expressions Basketball to multiple wins and was averaging 17.5 points, along with 9.0 boards and an efficient shooting clip of 70% shooting. I’ll put an emphasis on his offensive game for a second. His length, versatility, just his overall talent on the offensive end is scary. Three-level scorer, agile, high-IQ, etc.,” wrote Weingarten.
Of KU, Bowen told Stockrisers.com: ““It’s another school with a storied background and they’ve been recruiting me and sending me graphics every day. Learning about Kansas and how they are going to utilize me has been great so far.”
KU is recruiting McCain
KU is recruiting Jared McCain, a 6-2, 175-pound junior combo guard rom Centennial High in Corona, California.
McCain, the No. 16-rated player in the recruiting class of 2023 according to Rivals.com, told Stockrisers.com he’s considering KU, Houston, Louisville, Duke, Texas Tech, USC, UCLA, Gonzaga and others.
“I feel defensively I’ve improved a lot and (am working on) first lateral quickness and just working on my first step. Offensively I feel I’ve improved my mid-range shot and ball handling. Always just trying to get better at shooting,” he told Stockrisers.com.
KU recruiting to date
KU during the early signing period landed MJ Rice, a 6-5, 200-pound senior small forward from Prolific Prep in Napa, California, who is ranked No. 23 in the class of 2022 according to Rivals.com, plus Ernest Udeh, a 6-foot-10, 230-pound senior center from Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando, Florida, who is ranked No. 29 by Rivals.com; Gradey Dick, a 6-7, 195-pound senior forward from Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas, ranked No. 37 by Rivals.com and Zuby Ejiofor, a 6-8, 215-pound senior forward from Garland (Texas) High School, ranked No. 47 by Rivals.com.
This story was originally published December 24, 2021 at 9:34 AM with the headline "KU Jayhawks basketball offers scholarship to point guard recruit Desmond Claude."
