Arizona Marvelous Ideas: Arizona will ‘definitely’ be in Nico Mannion’s Top 5

The 5-star point guard will be trimming his list of finalists soon, and Arizona is expected to be one of them

Nico Mannion was supposed to narrow his list of finalists this week, but added two suitors — Kentucky and North Carolina — instead. That means 12 schools are now in the mix for the five-star point guard.

But Mannion recently told Pat Lawless of PrepCircuit.com that he plans to cut his list to five schools in the next week and a half, then schedule official visits, and then hopefully commit sometime in January or February.

While new schools have entered the picture, the Arizona Wildcats remain in good shape in Mannion’s recruitment.

Per Lawless, they are one of three teams Mannion sees “definitely making his next list cut.”

“I’d say Arizona, Duke and Villanova,” Mannion said. “The other ones are pretty up in the air I would say.”

A Phoenix native, Mannion took an unofficial visit to Arizona in late May and all 13 Crystal Ball predictions believe he will commit to the Wildcats, so they are considered the favorites.

“They have a great environment to play in,” Mannion told Lawless. “I’ve been there a couple times for games and stuff. I love the coaching staff and I like the guys up there too.”

Mannion is the No. 17 player in the 2019 class. He recently reclassified from 2020.

His recruitment is one Arizona needs to win, given his talent and proximity. He would be the highest-ranked recruit the Wildcats have landed since the FBI probe, and would give them the dynamic point guard they have been looking for for years. (Brandon Williams could be that guy, too.)

Mannion played in the Under Armour Finals in Las Vegas this week. Arizona’s entire coaching staff was there to watch.

Here are his highlights, courtesy of Courtside Films: