Iowa offer a surprise for 2021 Kentucky big man Trey James
By Tyler Devine
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Three-star center Trey James has received three scholarship offers since de-committing from Wake Forest in April.
The latest came Monday when Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery extended an offer to the 2021 Inez, Ky., native.
“It’s awesome,” James said. “I wasn’t really expecting coach McCaffery to offer. It’s huge because I think I fit really well into their system and how they play. Coach McCaffery was saying how he thought I fit well into it, so I think it would be a good fit. I think coming in and playing for him, especially with the success he’s had developing Luka Garza.”
Though the NCAA has placed restrictions on in-person contact between coaches and recruits due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the 6-foot-10, 220-pound James has come away impressed by virtual visits he has had with Iowa.
“The facilities and everything, it was all super nice,” James said. “They showed me pictures of the crowd at the games, it was always a packed house. It seemed like it was a great environment. Really just the entire campus was just amazing. I really hope I can get on campus and see everything myself because if it’s anything like in pictures it looks like I’ll love it.”
James also holds offers from Elon and Appalachian State, and has garnered interest from Marquette and Ohio State.
James averaged 15 points and 11 rebounds per game last season and said that he would describe himself as more of a pure post player to those who haven’t seen him play.
“I’m mostly in the post,” James said. “Defensively I’ll get as many blocked shots as I possibly can. I normally just stay in the paint, I won’t go out too often, I don’t really have to. Typically, I can overpower most people or just find a way to get around them and score.”
James said that he would like to have an idea of what school he will commit to by October and would like to visit campuses in person if possible.
However, James also said that he has considered the possibility of committing to a school that he has not visited in person.
“We’ve thought about that a lot,” James said. “Me and my family have been talking about it. We’re not against doing that without being able to visit, but we’d definitely like to be able to get on campus or at least be able to talk with them a lot more and learn as much as we can without actually being there.”
Iowa does not currently have any verbal commitments in its 2021 recruiting class.