UNC Basketball Recruiting: Top target dishes on visit to Duke

This past week hasn’t been a good one for the UNC basketball program, dropping two-straight games in Atlantic Coast Conference play by 20+ points each. But this past weekend could also have some implications on the recruiting trail for one target.

UNC’s top recruiting target right now is five-star forward G.G. Jackson. The South Carolina native is a 2023 prospect that is a five-star recruit and is UNC’s biggest target at the moment. Jackson is a top 10 player in that 2023 class and is a piece that Hubert Davis and his program would love to have along with five-star guard Simeon Wilcher.

But over the weekend, Jackson had a big visit to Duke as his family went to Durham to see what the program offered and it could have been a big one for his recruitment.

Going into that visit it was thought that UNC had the lead in this recruitment with in-state South Carolina not far behind. Duke was in the running as well, as was Georgetown, but it appeared as if Duke had some ground to make up. While they may have made some ground up, it could eventually lead to the Tar Heels missing out on this prized recruit and seeing him go to their rival which is the worst-case scenario.

But before we start to panic, Jackson talked about his trip to Duke with On3’s Jamie Shaw to break down the visit and where things stand. Here is what he said about the visit to Duke:

"“It was great,” Jackson told On3 Sports in an exclusive interview after he completed his visit. “My favorite part was sitting down with the coaches and talking about how the team would look with me,” Jackson said. “They said how they produce guys like me, and they compared me to Paolo and told me how they want me to play in his position.”"

Jackson does have a visit planned to South Carolina for next month and he could return to UNC’s campus before a decision.

However, it does appear as if this recruitment is heading for the finish line with a decision likely happening in the Spring. Does that bode well for UNC’s chances with the time that is left? Possibly but they may need to increase their lead a bit here as the gap is starting to shrink.

For more on Jackson and other UNC Basketball recruiting targets, please check back with Keeping it Heel.