Gophers’ aim for other recruits following miss on Perkins

Four-star basketball recruit Josh Perkins (Denver, Colo.) announced his commitment to Gonzaga on Saturday. Perkins chose the Bulldogs over the Minnesota Golden Gophers and the UCLA Bruins.

The Gophers made quite an impression on Perkins as they tried to secure an elite point guard in the upcoming 2014 recruiting class. When discussing Minnesota’s recruitment, his dad told Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com, “Obviously, Pitino is putting the full court press on.”

It is significant that Pitino showed he can attract the attention of top recruits but he’s now missed on two of the elite point guards he’s recruited with Josh Perkins joining Ja’Quan Newton in the just missed category.

Pitino has an important fall season of recruiting coming up. Here are some names to learn, as they will come to campus in the coming months.

• Isaiah Whitehead: A 5-Star shooting guard out of New York City ranked No. 17 nationally by Rivals. He is known for his ability to create his own shot. Also one the most elite scorers in the country and would be an incredible victory for the state of Minnesota if he commits. He intends to visit Minneapolis, but no date has been set to this point.
• Lourawls Nairn: One of the most important names to remember. He is the highest ranked point guard, besides Tyus Jones who most believe is headed elsewhere, that Pitino is recruiting. He is only 5-foot-10, but is considered one of the quickestguards of the 2014 class. His athleticism would be a perfect fit for Pitino’s up-tempo system. He will be visiting Minnesota on an official visit August 29-31, the weekend of the UNLV vs. Minnesota football game.
• Wade Baldwin: Ranked No. 117 nationally by Rivals, most agree he is tremendously underrated. He is playmaker known for his ability to create offense. He made big strides improving his stock this summer and will be visiting Minnesota on Sept. 21.