UNC Basketball: Kennedy Chandler nabs multiple offers from HBCUs

UNC basketball target Kennedy Chandler announced his five finalists in April, but two HBCUs recently extended scholarship offers to the 5-star point guard.

Despite naming an esteemed list of five finalists in late April that includes Duke, Kentucky, Memphis, North Carolina and Tennessee, Kennedy Chandler received a pair of notable scholarship offers over the past week.

The highly-touted floor general from Memphis, Tennessee added Philander Smith College and Tennessee State University to a growing list of nearly 40 schools. Both institutions are of the HBCU (historically Black college/university) variety, offering Chandler a less traditional path to that NBA. Whether or not the recent offers change anything in Chandler’s recruitment is unknown at this time, but he did acknowledge both via Twitter on Saturday evening.

The 5-star point guard, who was recently spotted in a pickup game with likely 2019-20 NBA Rookie of the Year Ja Morant, is expected to announce his final decision in the fall. That could, however, be affected by the current NCAA recruiting freeze caused by the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic. Regardless of that, it’s Tennessee that both 247Sports and Rivals have pegged as the prohibitive favorite for Chandler’s commitment. There’s currently a consensus among 12 recruiting experts and college basketball insiders across the two sites.

The 6-foot-1, 160-pound Chandler, who left Briarcrest Christian for Sunrise Christian Academy after his junior season, is ranked 11th in the nation according to the 247Sports Composite for 2021. He’s No. 1 among point guards in the class, and tops in the state of Kansas.

Stick with Keeping It Heel for all the latest on the Kennedy Chandler recruitment, and everything UNC basketball.