UNC Basketball: Tar Heels among schools prioritizing this 5-star

A UNC Basketball target reveals which teams are pursuing him the most and if he’s considering an alternative route other than college

Things have been relatively quiet in terms of news for five-star UNC Basketball recruiting target Jabari Smith as of late.

With a recruiting dead period in place, recruits and coaches aren’t allowed to travel for visits together although recruits can take unofficial tours of campuses. But for Smith, his recruitment has been open still and he’s drawing interest from a few big programs.

The five-star forward is one of the best players in the 2021 class, ranking No. 5 overall and No. 1 at power forward per the 247 Sports rankings. Smith doesn’t have a list as of yet but there are a few big SEC schools in the race as well as the Tar Heels. Roy Williams and his staff have been in pursuit of Smith for months now, hoping to add him to their 2021 class which features four-star forward Dontrez Styles.

Smith’s type of game fits well for the Tar Heels as he’s a scoring big man that can be a threat on the perimeter as well.

But where does he stand here in September? Smith hasn’t dropped a top list and is keeping his options open including the G-League. He caught up with Sports Illustrated to break down the latest and had something interesting to say about the Tar Heels:

"I’m exploring the G League option and the pro options overseas as well as the schools that I’m looking at. The schools that are recruiting me the most consistently is Georgia, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Tennessee, Auburn and LSU. I don’t have a list or anything like that, but those are the schools I talk to all the time."

We know UNC is still in pursuit of Smith as they have been for months. To hear that they are one of the teams that are heavily interested and pursuing him is good news.

However, they face some tough competition and one of the four SEC schools listed are likely among the favorites to land him. While the Tar Heels may have some work to do, this is good news for now. They just have to up the pursuit and hope they can land the talented forward when he’s ready to commit.

For more on the UNC Basketball program and recruiting targets like Smith, please check back with Keeping It Heel.