City's Latham taking it slow
City College center Jordan Latham took care of business quickly when it came to recruiting.
The 6-foot-8, 220-pounder visited several schools last summer and committed to Xavier in November, before the start of his junior season.
But when Arizona hired Xavier coach Sean Miller last month, Latham was forced to reopen his recruitment and start over once again.
“Everything’s been fine,” Latham said last week. “It was a crazy moment for me because I was very set on where I was trying to go, and then [Miller] left and one of the other coaches, coach [Emanuel] Book [Richardson] left with him. It was really hard on me because I was really set on playing for Sean Miller at Xavier.”
Miller has communicated with Latham since leaving Cincinnati for Tucson. Still, the chances of Latham ending up with the Wildcats appear slim.
“I think Arizona’s looking at me, but it’s just hard right now to figure out if I want to go to Arizona,” Latham said. “It’s so far away; a long way from where I live. Right now, when I talk to him, he just said to make my own decision.”
As a junior, Latham averaged 10 points, nine rebounds and five blocks per game, leading City to the Class 2A state championship. A four-star prospect according to Rivals.com, Latham has had plenty of suitors since reappearing on the market.
“I’m still serious about Xavier, [plus] Marquette, Texas, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech. Just a few schools,” said Latham, who also mentioned Penn State as an option.
Latham said he’s traded e-mails with Terps assistant Rob Ehsan, while Keith Booth has been in touch with his father.
Coaches from Virginia Tech and Marquette have been to Baltimore to visit Latham this spring. Latham said he’d like to visit Marquette and Texas this summer, in addition to a potential return trip to Xavier.
There’s still a decent possibility of Latham ending up in Cincinnati. The Musketeers’ chances of landing Latham improved when the school elevated assistant Chris Mack to head coach.
“Coach Mack, he really wants me to still attend Xavier,” Latham said. “He really likes my game, my attitude and me as a person. He really wants to coach me. ... I’m seriously considering sticking with them, but I’m looking at my options also. They’re probably the number one team on my list right now.”
Latham’s playing with Nike Baltimore Elite this summer. He sprained his MCL in the first tournament this spring, but should be back in action in a few weeks. In the meantime, Latham plans on taking visits and making his decision by November.
“It’s real stressful right now,” Latham said. “But right now I’m just [taking care of] my knee and just getting my game better.”
Baltimore Sun photo by Gene Sweeney Jr. / January 18, 2008
Comments
Thanks for posting this. As a lifelong Xavier fan and Cincinnati fan its good to see Latham is still considering the Muskies. I hope that he still likes what Xavier has to offer in terms of academics as well as athletics, and ends up recommitting. It's got to be tough on a high schooler to deal with making the decision and then being abandoned by the Coach. I am glad that Xavier did the right thing and let everyone out of there LOIs, since players accept based on the coach as much as anything else. I am glad we got a coach that will stick around for a while this time since he is both a Cincinnati native and Xavier grad.
Posted by: Rick | May 8, 2009 3:59 PM