Top recruit Brandon McCoy commits to UNLV

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Tuesday, April 25, 2017 | 8:27 p.m.

UNLV’s rebuilding process was thrust into overdrive on Tuesday, when blue-chip high school big man Brandon McCoy announced his commitment to the Rebels.

McCoy, a 6-foot-11 center, made his choice via Twitter:

A Chicago native, McCoy played his high school ball in San Diego and averaged 29 points and 13 rebounds per game as a senior last season. He was selected to play in the McDonald’s All-American Game and the Jordan Brand Classic, and he is currently rated as the No. 11 prospect in the Class of 2017.

Landing McCoy is a huge coup for second-year UNLV coach Marvin Menzies. McCoy was also considering Oregon, Michigan State, Arizona and San Diego State, and the recruitment played out slowly over the past several months. According to a source, McCoy eventually had a hard time choosing between his final two options — UNLV and Oregon — but in the end Menzies was able to sell the coveted post player on coming to Las Vegas to join the Rebels’ turnaround effort.

A look at how McCoy’s commitment will impact the program:

Dream recruit

On paper, McCoy is a perfect fit for UNLV. Menzies has long track record of developing big men and getting maximum production out of them in the post, and McCoy is oozing with moldable talent. He can rebound, protect the basket, run the floor and finish at and above the rim, all of which are huge needs for the Rebels heading into the 2017-18 season. Menzies isn’t going to mess around — expect McCoy to start immediately as a freshman and play a major role on both ends of the floor.

Menzies makes his mark

The Rebels couldn’t celebrate a lot of wins on the court last year, as they posted a program-worst 11-21 record. But McCoy’s commitment is a huge victory for the rebuilding process because of the way it could transform Menzies’ recruiting efforts.

Menzies leveraged every inch of his formidable recruiting ability in order to land McCoy. Menzies has a close, longtime personal relationship with McCoy’s mentor/guardian Sean Manning, and Manning’s trust in Menzies played a huge role in this recruitment. Menzies also offered a scholarship to another of Manning’s pupils, juco forward Anthony Smith, which helped pave the way for McCoy. And there was plenty of old-fashioned face time put in by the Rebels’ coaching staff.

It all paid off with McCoy’s commitment on Tuesday, and now Menzies can use that to continue building momentum on the recruiting trail. The Rebels are going after some top prospects in the Class of 2018 (and 2019, and 2020), so landing a blue chipper like McCoy will help make UNLV a more desirable option for future prospects.

Scholarship situation

With McCoy on board, the Rebels have 12 players under scholarship for next year and one open spot remaining. The top remaining recruiting targets are Shakur Juiston and Amauri Hardy, and if Menzies can land both, expect him to find a way to make another scholarship available.

Juiston, a 6-foot-7 power forward, is the top juco player in the country and would form a potentially dominant 1-2 punch in the frontcourt with McCoy, while Hardy is an explosive four-star scoring guard who was on the UNLV campus on Monday for an official visit.

Landing McCoy already makes UNLV’s incoming class a huge success. If Menzies can also get commitments from Juiston or Hardy — or both — it will be a monumental achievement and set up the Rebels for a run at the Mountain West title next year.

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.