BEAVERTON, Ore. -- John Wall finally announced a college decision Saturday afternoon.
No, it wasn't his decision, silly.
It was Jordan Hamilton's.
"I think he's going to Texas," Wall said. "I think that's where he's going."
So that's the (somewhat) big news coming out of the Nike Global Challenge, a three-day event here in the shadows of Nike's headquarters featuring three teams from the United States competing against squads from Senegal, Serbia, Canada, Puerto Rico and Lithuania. After Wall got 11 points, five assists and six steals in 23 minutes to lead his team to an 86-72 win over Puerto Rico, he disclosed Hamilton's future college -- though Hamilton is yet to confirm, it's worth noting -- and then made time to discuss his own roller-coaster ride of a recruitment with great candor.
A 6-foot-3 point guard, Wall has been thrust into the spotlight recently for three reasons:
1. He's the No. 1 prospect in America.
2. Baylor just hired one of his AAU coaches, Dwon Clifton, to be its director of player development.
3. His other AAU coach, Brian Clifton, is a former licensed sports agent, as CBSSports.com reported Friday.
Those developments have put Wall in the position of having multiple fan bases -- and to a lesser degree the entire recruiting world -- hang on his every move. It's strange, he admitted, particularly considering that this time two years ago he was a mostly unknown commodity outside of his home state of North Carolina.
"It's been kinda hard," Wall said. "But when you get on the basketball court you just have to block it out."
As for his recruitment, Wall acknowledged Baylor's hiring of Dwon Clifton matters.
Big surprise, huh?
"It might give them a little edge because (Dwon has) helped me out a lot," Wall said. "He's my AAU coach. He talked me through a lot and worked me out and things like that. I feel like all the schools are the same. But (Dwon) gave (Baylor) a little bit of an edge."
So there you go, Baylor fans.
You have the edge.
But the bad news for the Bears is that Wall said he's not ready to commit and that he will take official visits.
"I think I'll visit Memphis, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Kansas and Kentucky," he said. "And I was talking to Jordan Hamilton and he asked me if I'd put (Texas) back into the mix. So I think I'm gonna give them a look, too. ... But I don't have a timetable (on a decision). ... It could be right before basketball season or during basketball season. It could be anytime."
In other words, stay tuned.
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