Jeff Borzello, ESPN Staff Writer May 2, 2024, 11:57am ET
Close Basketball Insider Recruitment. Joined ESPN in 2014. He graduated from the University of Delaware.
Xavier switch Big East Most Valuable Player Desmond Claude informed ESPN that he has dedicated to USC.
Claude turns into the Trojans’ ninth switch addition and eleventh offseason recruit as new coach Eric Musselman nears completion of his first USC roster. He selected the Trojans after Claude visited their campus final weekend.
“Honestly, from the primary cellphone name, I felt prefer it was an ideal match,” Claude mentioned. “The tutorial assist, basketball sources, and basketball imaginative and prescient have been all like tailored for me. I additionally owe Coach Musselman over the previous few years the power to assist huge lead guards make the leap into NBA-ready guards. We have a confirmed observe report of supporting
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Claude, a 6-foot-6 guard, was a late bloomer within the 2022 highschool class however caught the eye of main packages together with his measurement, scoring means and talent to create for others. He made a promise to Travis Steele at Xavier after which stored that promise when Sean Miller took over after a training change. Claude broke out as a freshman, however his actual breakout got here final season, his sophomore 12 months.
His scoring common jumped from 4.7 factors to 16.6 factors, with 4.2 rebounds and three.2 assists per recreation.
Claude began with 25 factors towards Robert Morris and continued to attain in double digits in all however three video games all through the season. He scored 20 or extra factors on 12 separate events, together with 36 factors towards Georgetown in early March and 26 factors twice towards Butler. Xavier’s profession ended with 30 factors, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists within the NIT loss to Georgia.
The Trojans are in determined want of a playmaker of their backcourt, and Claude ought to fill that void.
“The imaginative and prescient Coach Musselman has proven me blends completely with my playmaking means, NBA aspirations and continued progress as a lead guard,” he mentioned. “I’m excited to take the subsequent huge leap in my growth, and particularly excited to be a part of the USC household.”
Claude is joined by Chibuzo Agbo (13.7 PPG at Boise State), Terrence Williams II (12.4 PPG at Michigan), St. Thomas (19.7 PPG at Northern Colorado) and Josh Cohen (15.9 PPG at Massachusetts). will be part of the deep switch class to the University of Southern California. . The nine-tier group of Portal recruits shall be joined by ESPN 100 freshmen Jalen Shelley (No. 50) and Isaiah Elohim (No. 55), each of whom have contributed to Musselman on the University of Arkansas.