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Duke, Kentucky, NC State, Villanova remain on Amile Jefferson’s list

AmileJeffersonHeadshot

He would mean different things to different programs, but reports are that there are four final schools that remain standing for the services of Friend’s Central (Pa.) forward Amile Jefferson.

Evan Daniels of Scout.com is reporting that NC State, Duke, Villanova, and Kentucky remain in contention to sign the Top 30 talent and 2012 McDonald’s All-American selection.

Jefferson scored eight points and grabbed three rebounds in the All-American game, held last week in Chicago, and averaged 17.9 points and five rebounds per game this season for Friend’s Central.

NC State and Villanova have been on the trail for Jefferson for a while, as Jay Wright hopes to build at Villanova, while Mark Gottfried looks to add a fourth (count ‘em, fourth) McDonald’s All-American to his 2012 recruiting class.

Kentucky will be depleted and looking to reload once the near-inevitable occurs, namely Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Terrence Jones, Anthony Davis, and possibly others leave for the NBA. And never count out Duke, who has just one recruit from the Class of 2012, fellow McDonald’s All-American Rasheed Sulaimon.

Jefferson would fit well at any of those four programs, as he is a player who thrives in the up-tempo style and has the basketball IQ to learn and adapt to a system at the college level.

He attacks the basket effectively and knows when to use the different tools in his arsenal, depending on how the defense is set. His game needs to continue to expand away from the rim, but he shows the willingness to work and make that happen.

His choice will come down to whether he wants to stay home and play for Villanova, who is losing guard Maalik Wayns and possibly Dom Cheek, or work himself right into a contender, whether at Duke, Kentucky, or NC State.

In an interview with ESPN’s Dave Telep, he talked about the decision he must make and the difficulty he has found in deciding whether to stay home and give his family an opportunity to see him play or, as he says, move away and “face adversity by [himself].”

Daniel Martin is a writer and editor at JohnnyJungle.com, covering St. John’s. You can find him on Twitter:@DanielJMartin_