Texas Basketball Recruiting: Horns should target elite 5-star SG Jalen Green

A good prospect for Texas basketball to turn all of its recruiting attention to for the 2020 cycle is the elite California native SG Jalen Green.

Even though the 2019 Texas basketball recruiting class has rounded out nicely this cycle, the future classes don’t have anything in line yet. It’s not a worrying sign at this point that head Texas basketball coach Shaka Smart hasn’t landed any 2020 or 2021 commits on the recruiting trail yet, but it could be in due time.

Texas basketball fans do have to be getting tired of most of the positive news coming out of this program coming on the recruiting trail instead of on the court for the actual team now. Smart is a coach that does recruit very well, as noted by hauling in the top ranked 2019 class in the Big 12 thus far in this cycle.

Topping other Big 12 basketball programs on the recruiting trail like the Kansas Jayhawks, Iowa State Cyclones, Oklahoma Sooners, Oklahoma State Cowboys, etc. isn’t easy to do. The Big 12 is one of the most complete and deepest basketball conferences in the nation top-to-bottom. It might top the ACC in that regard as tops in the nation among the Power Conferences.

However, there is one big-time 2020 high school prospect that Smart and Texas basketball haven’t even given a scout look to yet. If the Texas Longhorns want to continue the success it has seen on the recruiting trail for the past few cycles heading into the 2020 class, it will need to do everything it can to impress prospects the level of five-star shooting guard Jalen Green.

Since Texas basketball recruiting for the 2020 cycle has yet to afford much attention to a prospect like Green, it should lead fans to think that he is mostly an unrealistic target. Yet, this wouldn’t be the first prospect that the Horns were able to build a relationship with coming out of the state of California.

Green hails from Fresno, CA, and is a product of San Joaquin Memorial High School. He’s rated as the nation’s No. 2 2020 high school basketball prospect and the best shooting guard by 247Sports and Rivals. Green also has interest from some of the top schools in the nation that spans countrywide.

He holds 18 offers from some of the top college hoops programs this sport boasts, and his offer sheet could continue to grow. Some of the more notable offers he’s received came from the Memphis Tigers, Kentucky Wildcats, Villanova Wildcats, Maryland Terrapins, UConn Huskies, and Arizona Wildcats. Some of the Big 12 programs that have sent him an offer include Oklahoma State and Kansas.

The 247Sports Crystal Ball Predictions give the edge to Memphis just ahead of Kentucky to land the commitment of Green. Rivals FutureCast also has a similar outlook for Green’s commitment as 247Sports does.

However, there isn’t a commitment announcement set for Green anytime in the coming months. It would be worth it for Texas basketball to jump in to his recruitment late and see what can be done. A decent run through the NCAA Tournament for the Horns could also help gain some traction between these two parties.

Very few times will you see an elite recruit like Green come through for some of the nation’s top college hoops programs to target at shooting guard. Green is 6-foot-5 and 170 pounds so he does still need to put on some size. But, he has a tremendous skill set that includes the versatility that Smart can develop and help excel in his system.

Even if Green is only planning on playing at the college level for one year, the Forty Acres would be a fantastic place for him to land. He’s a very good two-way shooting guard with elite athleticism and the sharpshooting from the outside that favors smaller players in the game today.