UNC Basketball: Ziaire Williams makes long-awaited college decision

5-star UNC basketball target Ziaire Williams picks Stanford over North Carolina, three others.

One of the nation’s most talked about recruitments came to an end on Sunday afternoon when 5-star class of 2020 prospect Ziaire Williams picked Stanford over Arizona, North Carolina, UCLA and USC.

Not only is Williams the biggest recruiting get of Stanford head coach Jerod Haase’s career, but he’s the highest-rated Cardinal commitment in history according to the 247Sports Composite ranking which dates back to the early-2000s.

It was no shock that Williams picked Stanford, particularly after a half-dozen Crystal Ball picks came in for the Cardinal late Saturday night just hours after he announced his decision would come the following day. It was particularly telling when Director of Basketball Scouting Jerry Meyer, and Director of Basketball Recruiting Evan Daniels both projected Stanford as Williams’ future destination, as the two have combined to correctly predict better than 94 percent of 2020 recruit’s college decisions.

Previously ranked No. 40 in the 247Sports 2020 team rankings, Stanford will undoubtedly move up with the commitment of Williams, who’s the No. 5 recruit in the nation. The top player at his position, and third in the state of California, Williams averaged 15 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.6 assists for Sierra Canyon last season. He recorded nearly 22 points and seven boards per game on the Nike EYBL circuit last year.

This closes out the recruitment of one of the Tar Heels’ top targets in the 2020 cycle, and leaves them with just one remaining player on their radar. That player, Kerwin Walton, will make his decision a couple of Saturdays from now.

Stick with Keeping It Heel for all the latest on the Tar Heels’ 2020 recruiting class, and everything UNC basketball.