With the move to the Big Ten, Maryland head coach Mark Turgeon has begun focusing more of his recruiting efforts westward, namely in the basketball talent-rich state of Indiana.
One of the first recruits from the Hoosier State that Turgeon has turned his full attention to is Indianapolis (Ind.) North Central five-star small forward Kris Wilkes.
Wilkes is coming off of a big opening weekend in New York City, where he averaged 23.5 points per game in a pair of contests for the Indy Hoosiers of the Under Armour Association.
Following his scoring outburst, Wilkes had in-home visits with a number of schools including Maryland on April 19 and Illinois, Michigan State and UCLA on April 20.
Maryland head coach Mark Turgeon as well as lead recruiter Cliff Warren both met with Wilkes in Indy on April 19 and the 6-foot-7, 185-pound wing liked what he heard.
“[Turgeon] was really talking about the campus and their players,” Wilkes said. “He was saying how they always have good guards and that if I went there I’d be playing more of a wing and that’d I’d play a big role for them. He was saying I could be a good player there. He likes that I can handle the ball and play multiple positions. I can play the two, three or four and that’s good for him I guess.
“As far as the campus goes, [Turgeon] was just talking about how good the campus is and it makes me want to go check it out and look at it because I’ve never been to D.C. He was saying it is pretty nice down there. So I think that’s what stood out the most--how nice it might be to go down there.”
Wilkes has seen his relationship grow with Maryland assistant Cliff Warren, who has been communicating with Wilkes from the beginning. Wilkes has also taken notice of the fact Warren has made multiple trips out to Indiana to watch him play during the high school season and was in NYC watching him during the opening live period.
“I think it has been building up more,” Wilkes said of his relationship with Warren. “I’m good with coach Turgeon but I think I have an even better relationship with Cliff Warren because I’ve been talking with him since day one. He texts me every now and then and he tells me good luck on games. We just talk a lot. But overall, I think I have a pretty good relationship with Maryland.”
On April 20, Wilkes received visits from Illinois, Michigan State and UCLA.
“I talked to the Illinois assistant coach at my school,” Wilkes said. “We were just talking about basketball and life and stuff like that. And then after that the Michigan State coach at the school too, but it was in the office. And then after that I went back home and UCLA came over later. It was pretty good with them too. I liked them.”
Asked about his relationships with those staffs, Wilkes simply stated, “I think I have a pretty good relationship with all of them.”
Next up for Wilkes is the SAT test, which he says he will take at the beginning of May. He hopes to begin planning some campus visits after that.
As for what he’s looking to improve on this spring and summer, Wilkes says he’s trying to expand his game out to the three-point line.
“I’m looking to move out a little bit further to the three and start knocking a couple of those down in games while I keep doing the stuff I always do like attack the rim and knock down mid-range jump shots,” said Wilkes.
As for where the Terps stand, Wilkes doesn’t want to name any favorites, but Maryland coaches have made an impression.
“I’m not going to say that they’re above any other school but they are making a good impression by coming in and talking to me,” said Wilkes. “It always makes me feel good.”
