By Harold
When I went to the open practice at Duke last month, it was the same weekend that Harrison Barnes was making his official visit. According to Scout.com, Barnes is the top recruit in the country, and his college choices are narrowed to Duke, UNC, Kansas, UCLA and Oklahoma, plus hometown Iowa State. Duke and UNC are the favorites and his decision could tip the balance of power in the ACC, if not nationally.
Anyway, as soon as Barnes walks into Cameron, the Duke fans in attendance immediately start chanting his name and giving him an ovation. And I wondered — what’s it like for a premier high school player during the recruiting process, to have every fan, coach and booster suck up to you? What was the rest of his visit to Duke like?
Well, I’ve just found the mother lode — a diary by Barnes on highschoolhoop.com. Here’s a hint at how cool it is to be Barnes — he only talks about the “official” stuff (no night-time activities), and still the standing ovation during open practice must be so commonplace for him it wasn’t even something he bothered to mention.
Here’s the highlights — all three assistant coaches pick him up at the airport, and Coach K meets him at the hotel (the Washington Duke, of course). He had a steak and lobster dinner at K’s house. He goes to the top of the Bell Tower in the Duke Chapel (I never could as a student). He meets the Dean of Undergraduate Admissions (um, I think he’s getting in), the Dean of the Law School (um, okay), the Dean of the Business School (I guess he’s going for a JD/MBA?) and the Director of Academics.
Now, some people may bemoan the fact that four deans at a top-tier university took the time to meet with a guy who will stay, at most, through his sophomore year. Instead, I demand to know what the president was doing that was so important!
I’m not sure any of the “official” stuff matters. I’ve heard at least one story each about a top recruit choosing schools based on shoe contracts (Nike vs. adidas), the school colors/mascot, whether their current number is available, whether their friends from AAU are there, and of course what happens during the “unofficial” portion of the trip. Honestly, who knows how a 17-year-old makes a decision?
Barnes is making his announcement at 4 p.m. on Friday (televised by ESPNU). I can only hope the steak was cooked to his liking.
Laura
Harold
