The No. 1 recruit in the nation, five-star center Evan Mobley, committed Monday to Southern California over offers from Miami, Alabama, UCLA, Washington and others.
Mobley, who plays for Rancho Christian in Temecula, California, will join his older brother Isaiah and father, Eric, at USC. Eric is an assistant coach on Andy Enfield's staff and his brother, Isaiah, is an incoming freshman who signed with the Trojans in their 2019 recruiting class.
The 6-foot-11, 200-pound Mobley rates as the highest-ranked basketball prospect to commit to USC since O.J. Mayo in 2007 and DeMar DeRozan the year after. If his perfect 100 ranking at 247Sports doesn't change between now and signing day, he'll be the highest-ranked recruit to play at USC.
Enfield raked in the Mobley brothers by hiring their father in the spring of 2018 with an eye on acquiring the top recruits in consecutive years. Isaiah Mobley committed to USC less than two months after his father was hired and signed with the Trojans last fall.
Since Enfield's arrival at USC in 2013, the Trojans have reeled in top-end talent in the Pac-12 but been unable to string together a run of success in the NCAA Tournament like he had at Florida Gulf Coast. USC has had three losing seasons during his tenure -- including a 16-17 mark last year. With the Mobley brothers on their way and an increasingly bright outlook on the horizon, Enfield may have bought himself more time -- and perhaps more wins -- by ensuring some of the top talents from California play their college ball at Southern Cal.
