Ben Simmons of the Montverde Academy in Florida signed his letter of intent to play for the LSU Tigers in 2015.
Ben Simmons is best NCAA basketball 2015 recuit according to Rivals.com and he didn’t sign with Kentucky or Duke or North Carolina or Kansas on Wednesday, but he signed his letter of intent to play for the LSU Tigers on the first day of the early signing period.
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Ben Simmons is a native of Melbourne, Australia, and attends Montverde Academy in Florida. He is a 6-10 forward who is capable of playing guard. A new age, versatile big man, Simmons averaged 18.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 2.7 assists a game for Montverde as a junior, while leading his team to a 28-0 record.
In the DICK’s Sporting Good National High School tournament in April, Montverde Academy took on Oak Hills Academy of California (arguably the best basketball school in the nation) in the championship and Montverde, led by Ben Simmons’ 24 points and 12 rebounds, took the 71-62 win.
LSU is looking at a chance to be scary good within a couple of years.
The Advocate reports that the Tigers are believed to be recruiting Sarasota, Florida shooting guard Antonio Blakeney and Brandon Sampson of Baton Rouge. Blakeney is rated No. 13 overall by Rivals.com and Sampson, a four-star prospect, is No. 40 on the list.
Ben Simmons says he’s actively recruiting other skilled players to join him at LSU.
“I have been trying to get other guys to join me instead of listening to them recruit me,” Simmons told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. “Once I committed and kept saying LSU was where I was going, everybody pretty much backed off.”
LSU has been to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament four times, their last time being in the 2005-2006 season. Last year, the Tigers went 20-14 and 9-9 in the SEC last season, losing in the second round of the NIT to SMU. The Tigers have not been to the NCAA tournament since 2009. With Ben Simmons, as well as Sampson and Blakeney, LSU has the potential to be a very good college baskeball team in the coming couple of years.
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