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UNC Basketball: No. 1 prospect James Wiseman says UNC is still involved

By Blake Cockrum

CHAPEL HILL, NC - NOVEMBER 29: The mascot of the North Carolina Tar Heels in action against the Michigan Wolverines during their game at Dean Smith Center on November 29, 2017 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NC - NOVEMBER 29: The mascot of the North Carolina Tar Heels in action against the Michigan Wolverines during their game at Dean Smith Center on November 29, 2017 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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Nation’s top prospect says Duke and North Carolina, among others, are still involved in his recruitment

Despite a bevy of evidence and widespread speculation that James Wiseman is headed to either Kentucky or Memphis next year, the No. 1 prospect in the class of 2019 claims that his recruitment is still open.

That’s right. The nation’s top-ranked prospect that everyone had written off as a future Wildcat or Tiger says that Duke, Kansas and North Carolina among others, are still involved with his recruitment.

Maybe when he says “involved” it just means that those programs are still trying to recruit him. Maybe “involved” means that he simply hasn’t eliminated them yet. Perhaps he just prefers to keep the allure of having college basketball’s top programs on his list of prospective schools. Or maybe he’s sincere about the state of his recruitment, and that what seemed to be a two-horse race truly is open to change.

Related Story: Roy Williams visited this 5-star prospect on Sunday

Nobody really knows. What we do know, though, is that at this juncture, it seems like it would take what would equate to a miracle to turn him from one of the aforementioned favorites.

"“Penny Hardaway was my high school coach, so I have a great relationship with him,” Wiseman told 247Sports. “He’s just trying to get people back to watching the games, and they didn’t have enough people there to watch their games. He’s just recruiting top players, so he can get [the program] back into form.”"

Wiseman also expressed interest in teaming up with current AAU running mate Trendon Watford, the No. 14 prospect in the class of 2019. As is with Wiseman, Memphis is currently considered the favorite to land Watford according to 73 percent of predictions tallied in the 247Sports Crystal Ball.

And the argument for Kentucky? Well, it’s Kentucky.

These days, it seems like Anthony Davis, Karl Anthony-Towns, John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins are about the only selling point that John Calipari needs to lean on. But there’s always Eric Bledsoe, Devin Booker, Jamal Murray, Julius Randle, Malik Monk, De’Aaron Fox and Bam Adebayo if he needs another. And whether you like it or not, that weighs heavily on the minds of talented young prospects hoping to reach the game’s highest level.

So, do the Tar Heels have a chance?

No drum roll needed here, folks. Nor any suspense. Wiseman might take a flyer on North Carolina, and he might even welcome Roy Williams into his home for a visit, but that’s all it’ll amount to.

Don’t despair, though, UNC fans. The future is plenty bright. There’s evidence of that in Nassir Little and Coby White. And just in case you forgot, the Tar Heels did win that little end-of-year tournament just two seasons ago.

Next: Tar Heels' 2019 class could look a lot like this...

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