UNC Recruiting: November updates on Tar Heels basketball

Hoosiers trending for 2018’s top shooting guard

Five-star shooting guard Romeo Langford is nearing a decision, but it seems far more likely at this point that he commits in April’s late signing period rather than during the fall’s early signing period that began on Wednesday.

Langford is one of six top-10 prospects in the class of 2018 that remain uncommitted. No. 1 overall prospect R.J. Barrett is expected to commit to Duke at any time, and third-ranked Bol Bol is likely headed to Oregon. Simisola Shittu and Dairus Garland, No. 7 and 10, respectively, both appear to be headed to Vanderbilt.

That leaves only Zion Williamson, the No. 2 prospect in the 2018 class, remaining uncommitted at this time. His recruitment still appears to be wide open between the likes of Clemson, Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Langford, on the other hand, plans to eliminate two of the five schools that are currently recruiting him. According to his father, Tim, he’ll announce his top three schools this weekend.

The safest assumption regarding his final list of three schools is that Indiana will be one of them. It’s also not going out on a tremendously thin limb to say that Kansas is likely to make its way onto that list. The remaining spot, though, is up for grabs.

North Carolina, UCLA or Vanderbilt could all make the list, and Langford has given no indication which one it will be.

For the Tar Heels, it would mean adding to a class that is already ranked No. 1 in the nation. They could use an elite shooter of Langford’s caliber, but his decision certainly won’t make or break them.

UCLA would be able to build on its top-20 class, though the Bruins already have commitments from two top-60 shooting guards in the class.

If Vanderbilt were to land the talented guard, it would be an unprecedented recruiting cycle for the program. Langford would likely be the Commodores’ third commitment from a top-10 player in the class, a feat that they’ve never accomplished before. A trio of Romeo Langford, Simisola Shittu and Darius Garland would be absolutely phenomenal for a school often grinding at the end of the season just to make the NCAA Tournament.

My guess is that North Carolina joins Indiana and Kansas in Langford’s final three, but we’ll have to wait until the spring’s late signing period to hear his final decision.