Tag: Julian Phillips

Auburn loses out on five-star recruit to in-conference school

Bruce Pearl won’t be adding another five-star to his squad just yet.

Any hopes of the Tigers adding another five-star to its recruiting class will have to wait.

Five-star small forward Julian Phillips, who was seemingly warm on Auburn in recent weeks before his commitment on Thursday, has decided to play for the in-conference Tennessee Volunteers. Phillips is the Volunteers’ only hard commit of Tennessee’s class thus far.

Philips, like new Auburn commit Yohan Traore, was slated to go to LSU before head coach Will Wade’s departure led to him de-committing. Traore chose Auburn as his destination, but Philips decided not to follow his teammate and to head to Knoxville, Tennessee to play for the Volunteers instead.

Philips would have gone to an SEC champion either way — Auburn clinched the regular-season SEC title last year, but the Volunteers were the winners of 2022’s SEC tournament. The Tigers played Tennessee once last year for the Big 12/SEC Challenge, where they lost 67-62 in Knoxville.

The addition of Phillips could make Tennessee a stronger force to be reckoned with in the SEC, a probability that Bruce Pearl and his squad are likely not too pleased with. Nevertheless, Auburn’s 2022 recruiting class is still currently No. 16 on 247Sports’ recruiting class rankings, and the Tigers look to repeat their success from last year with Traore and new transfer [autotag]Johni Broome[/autotag].

[listicle id=46848]

Auburn target sets announcement time for Thursday commitment

Auburn target Julian Phillips sets announcement time for his decision on Thursday afternoon.

On Wednesday, 247Sports national basketball analyst Travis Branham tweeted that five-star small forward Julian Phillips will announce his commitment at 3 ET on Thursday. The decision will be aired on CBS Sports HQ.

Phillips has seven options on the table with Auburn being one. Other schools in the mix are USC, Florida State, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Also, it is worth noting that he has two professional opportunities as well with one being Overtime Elite and the other being the G-League Ignite. According to On3 basketball analyst Jamie Shaw, Phillips was scheduled to meet with G-League officials on Wednesday.

Previously, the South Carolina native had committed to LSU. However, he backed off of his commitment when the program decided to fire head coach Will Wade. He wasn’t the only commit to make that decision. Recent Auburn signee Yohan Traore was also committed to LSU prior to backing off and choosing Auburn. Since re-opening his recruitment, Phillips has been the hottest name in college basketball recruiting. As you can tell, he has a handful of options from across the country.

(AP Photo/Gregory Payan)

247Sports recruiting rankings have Phillips listed as the No. 18 prospect in the 2022 class. The 2022 McDonald’s All-American would be a huge addition to the Tigers’ roster. He adds length and athleticism to either the tree or four spot in the rotation for the Tigers. As of Wednesday, On3‘s RPM (Recruiting Prediction Machine) favors Auburn at 32.6%. We will find out Phillips’ next destination on Thursday afternoon. The Auburn faithful has their fingers crossed that he ends up on the Plains.

2022 five-star forward, Auburn target reveals commitment date

Big-time target and five-star Julian Phillips listed Auburn among his top seven options.

On Wednesday, 2022 five-star power forward Julian Phillips cut his list to seven options. Auburn was one of the schools listed.

The South Carolina native included Florida State, South Carolina, USC, and Tennessee in the mix as well. He also kept the door open for potential professional opportunities. The G-League Ignite and Overtime Elite teams were also included in Phillips’ list of options. Phillips also added that a decision would be made on May 12.

Phillips has taken one official visit after decommitting from LSU back in March. The lone official visit was to Auburn. Head coach [autotag]Bruce Pearl[/autotag] and his staff should certainly like their chances at landing the five-star. They have already landed five-star and former LSU commit Yohan Traore.

On3’s RPM (Recruiting Prediction Machine) gives Auburn the edge to land Phillips at 32.6%. Although he is from the Palmetto State, many still expect him to commit to Auburn. According to 247Sports rankings, he is listed as the No. 18 recruit in the 2022 class. The possibility of adding Phillips is weighing greatly on the minds of many Auburn supporters.

Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

About a month ago, Phillips spoke with On3’s Jamie Shaw. Here is what Phillips had to say:

“Coach (Bruce) Pearl is another hot team who played really well in the SEC. He also has had success putting a lot of guys into the NBA; look at Jabari Smith this year. I think I could fit into their system and how they play as well.”

The thought of adding Phillips to an already stout frontcourt is something that Auburn fans have dwelled upon over the last few months. A frontcourt of Jaylin Williams, Dylan Cardwell, Yohan Traore, Johni Broome, and Phillips could be the best that Auburn has ever had. With his decision set for next week, the Auburn faithful can only hope that Bruce Pearl works a little more magic. We will find out soon enough.

[mm-video type=video id=01fzxs7brvq6hn1b2286 playlist_id=01eqbyzb4ahnasj2m3 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fzxs7brvq6hn1b2286/01fzxs7brvq6hn1b2286-1dfcd168c99f981b53adcfdde2ee2241.jpg]

[listicle id=46851]

[listicle id=46848]

LSU’s Xavier Pinson becomes next Tigers player to enter transfer portal

The Tigers have lost their starting backcourt duo from this past season to the transfer portal.

LSU continues to hemorrhage players in the wake of coach Will Wade’s firing. The Tigers lost every commit in both the 2022 and 2023 recruiting classes, and guard [autotag]Brandon Murray[/autotag] entered the transfer portal.

Now, LSU has another loss to replace as point guard [autotag]Xavier Pinson[/autotag] also entered the transfer portal on Thursday. Pinson is back in the portal after arriving in Baton Rouge this season as a transfer from Missouri.

In his lone season with the Tigers, Pinson started 27 of the 28 games he appeared in while averaging 9.8 points and 4.8 assists. Pinson is a senior but will use his one remaining year of eligibility due to COVID-19 elsewhere.

With the losses of Murray and Pinson, LSU now has to replace its entire starting backcourt. The Tigers will almost certainly have to hit the portal aggressively themselves, as their two signees in [autotag]Julian Phillips[/autotag] and [autotag]Devin Ree[/autotag] were released from their letters of intent, while hard commit [autotag]Yohan Traore[/autotag] backed off his pledge, too.

LSU also lost the commitment of its lone 2023 pledge, five-star point guard [autotag]Marvel Allen[/autotag].

Between the roster attrition and potential looming sanctions from the NCAA, this is certainly not an easy situation for new head coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] to walk into. His first priority will be to simply fill out a roster that has taken major losses in the week since the offseason began.

[mm-video type=video id=01fyz6qy76cg2x59392h playlist_id=01eqbz5s7cf4w69e0n player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01fyz6qy76cg2x59392h/01fyz6qy76cg2x59392h-c9224d55511459a1c8f48f7ebdf92f78.jpg]

[listicle id=49574]

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno

LSU basketball recruiting is a mess. Where does it go from here?

LSU’s recruiting is in a really bad spot, and it might get worse before it gets better.

With the season now in the rearview mirror, LSU basketball enters a period of uncertainty. There’s not much anybody knows about where this program is headed, if anything at all.

Coaching changes always bring turnover and turmoil, but this one feels different. The way the Wade era ended paired together with looming NCAA sanctions has created an atmosphere of chaos.

LSU might have a hard time getting a coach to sign on, even if a loaded contract offer is put in front of them. The program could have even more trouble getting recruits. This is going to be a ground-up rebuild, even if the sanctions from the NCAA are mild.

Before the firing of Wade, LSU’s recruiting was in a great spot, maybe as good as it’s ever been. There were multiple five-stars poised to join the program, but now LSU has just one commit left in Yohan Traore, and Tigers fans shouldn’t hold their breath on that one either.

A couple of guys who have backed off their pledge have noted that Wade was the reason they wanted to come to Baton Rouge. Even if there wasn’t the drama with the NCAA, LSU was going to have a hard time holding this class together.

It might get worse before it gets better, so let’s look at who the Tigers have lost and where they can go from here.

5-star LSU basketball signee released from letter of intent, decommits

The Tigers have now seen two signees back off their pledge since firing Will Wade.

LSU has lost yet another 2022 signee in the wake of coach Will Wade’s firing.

On Saturday, five-star Branson (Missouri) Link Academy prospect Julian Phillips announced that he had been released from his letter of intent by the NCAA and would be decommitting from the program. The 6-foot-8-inch, 200-pound power forward is listed as the No. 12 player in his recruiting class.

“Due to the recent changes within the staff, I have been granted my release from the university and will be re-opening my recruitment,” Phillips said in a post on Twitter. “I look forward to the journey of finding a new home.”

Phillips is the second recruit LSU has lost from its 2022 class since the news came down last Saturday that Wade would be dismissed. That decision came shortly after the program received a Notice of Allegations from the NCAA that charged Wade with several Level I violations.

Four-star forward Devin Ree, who had also signed his letter of intent, decommitted from the team earlier this week. That leaves the Tigers with just one player currently committed in the 2022 class: five-star center Yohan Traore.

Traore gave LSU his pledge on Jan. 30, and he’s sticking to it as of now. However, he could still look to join Ree and Phillips in the coming days. As things currently stand, the Tigers have the No. 66 recruiting class in the country, per 247Sports.

[listicle id=49467]

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno

Pair of LSU commits named to McDonald’s All-American team

Both Women’s and Men’s LSU basketball teams have McDonald’s All-Americans headed to Baton Rouge.

LSU women’s and men’s basketball teams are off to fantastic seasons. Both have a combined 32-7, with the women being 17-3 and the men 15-4. Both teams have some new talent coming in with recently named McDonald’s All-Americans. For the men Julian Phillips and for the women Flau’Jae Johnson. 

The McDonald’s All-American Game is where the best high school basketball players play. The game is played in Chicago.

Julian Phillips 

Phillips is ranked the No.12 player in the country, according to the 247Sports Composite. He is a five-star player that signed with LSU at the end of November. Phillips is a 6-8 forward with a high IQ and can play many different positions. In addition, he can shoot the ball and can move without the basketball. Phillips will be a great addition to the Tigers team.

Phillips will be the 20th McDonald’s All-Ameican that has signed with LSU. The first one was John Williams in 1984, and the previous player was Trendon Watford in 2019.

Flau’Jae Johnson

Johnson is ranked as the No.6 guard in the nation by ESPNW’s Hoopgurlz. She can play any perimeter position on the court at a high level. In addition, Johnson has outstanding court vision and can shoot the basketball from the outside. Also. Johnson is a hard worker and should develop into a star under Kim Mulkey.

LSU signs five-star forward in 2022 recruiting class

Will Wade signs a five-star prospect for the fifth-straight class.

Signing day was monumental for LSU men’s basketball coach Will Wade as he signed five-star forward Julian Phillips on Wednesday. This makes the fifth-straight year that Coach Wade has signed a five-star prospect to play basketball on the Bayou.

Phillips was a highly sought-after prospect as the No. 1 player in the state of Missouri and the No. 2 forward in the country. His offer list included Alabama, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Ohio State, Texas Tech, UCLA, and Wake Forest. He had no shortage of suitors.

Phillips will look to help Wade and the Tigers chase the elusive national championship for LSU. Their last title run came in the 1934-35 season. They were last a Final Four team in 2005-06 under then-head coach John Brady. Phillips will bring length and athleticism to the position.

The team also has a commitment from four-star forward Devin Ree of Mississippi.

Julian Phillips’ Recruiting Profile

Rating

Stars Overall State Position
247 5 19 1 2
Rivals 5 14 – 6
ESPN 5 14 1 5
On3 4 35 2 7
247 Composite 5 14 1 2

Vitals

Hometown Branson, Missouri
Projected Position Forward
Height 6-8
Weight 200

Recruitment

  • Offered on Jun. 15, 2020
  • Official Visit on Jun. 28, 2021
  • Committed on Oct. 8, 2021
  • Signed Letter of Intent on Nov. 10, 2021

Offers

  • LSU
  • Florida State
  • Tennessee
  • USC

Twitter

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Clemson makes top group for in-state top prospect

One of the nation’s top prospects named Clemson among his top schools Monday. Blythewood (S.C.) four-star Julian Phillips announced his top 10 via social media and included the Tigers along with Alabama, Kansas, LSU, Florida State, Tennesee, UCLA, …

One of the nation’s top prospects named Clemson among his top schools Monday.

Blythewood (S.C.) four-star Julian Phillips announced his top 10 via social media and included the Tigers along with Alabama, Kansas, LSU, Florida State, Tennesee, UCLA, Florida, Virginia and Southern Cal.

Phillips (6-8, 200) is ranked as No. 4 power forward in the 2022 class by 247Sports and No. 7 by Rivals, while ESPN considers him the No. 12 power forward in the country.

He is the No. 2 prospect in the Palmetto State and No. 25 overall prospect in the 2022 class regardless of position, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Phillips made an official visit to Clemson back in early June.

Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!