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ANTHONY BENNETT DISCUSSES FINAL FIVE

There is still plenty of high-end talent still on the board in the college basketball recruiting Class of 2012. One such prospect is Findlay Prep’s Anthony Bennett, a 6-foot-8 power forward and native of Brampton, Ontario.

Bennett, whop runs on the summer AAU circuit with CIA Bounce, is an imposing force on the basketball court. He violently attacks the rim with strong finishes and his athletic ability is impressive for a player his size and strength. He has also shown the ability to hit from three-point range and his potential almost seems limitless at the power forward position at the college level. He continues to improve his skill level making him an even more dangerous offensive player.

“I’m trying to improve my ball-handling and shooting the ball consistently from the three-point line,” said Bennett of the areas of his game he has improved upon the most. “I think I need to be a better defender because in college I’m going to be guard the three or four so I think I need to get quicker.”

Bennett recently made some waves with the news he had cut his list from nine schools he was considering to five, cutting Ohio State, Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Connecticut from his list. That means his final five schools are Kentucky, UNLV, Florida, Washington and Oregon.

“I picked those five schools because I think it’s the best fit for me [and] I feel like if I go to any one of those schools I could work for a starting spot,” said Bennett.

Bennett still has all five of his official visits available to take and currently plans to visit each school before making a deicsion. He hopes to begin those visits over the course of the next month or two but has nothing planned as of yet. The relationship he builds with players and coaches on his visits will likely play a very large role in his decision.

“I’ll probably decide after basketball season in April and I’ll say the important factor of my decision will be how I get along with the coaches and players from the school,” he said.

Bennett also mentioned the official visit itself will have a big impact on the decision.

As for the final five, here is how Bennett currently feels about each, in his own words to NBE earlier today:

UNLV:

UNLV has been doing a great job recruiting me. I haven’t been to a lot of games this year but I know they are doing well. Khem [Birch] is a great player, he block shots, rebounds and scores so it would be cool if we played together next year.

Kentucky:

Great coaching staff, they produce great players. They told me they might have seven players leaving so that opens a spot for me to start right away.

Florida:

Great coaching staff,[they] produce players. They said they will develop my game and help me be a better player on the wing. If I go I have a chance to practice with Patrick Young (if he stays) but if not then I would have a chance to start.

Washington:

Coaching staff is real cool, tough conference so I will be competing against top players every day. Have a chance to start right away too.

Oregon:

I like the coaches, they would be losing a forward so I would come in and take that spot. Also Dominic Artis has been talking to me about it every day, so just playing college ball with him would be fun to do.

The is no doubt Anthony Bennett will be a recrutiing saga closely watched this coming spring. In the meantime, five schools and their fans will be wondering what-if for next season if their program is lucky enough to land this multi-talented, elite prospect. NBE will closely monitor his story throughout the rest of the season and into the spring as the much anticipated decision is reached.
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