And the winner of the Iman Shumpert sweepstakes is...
...Georgia Tech.
Shumpert revealed his choice a short time ago on the Comcast Sports Channel in Chicago.
"I believe that Georgia Tech is a place, basketball-wise, I feel like I can produce there, and I feel like it's a good opportunity for me," Shumpert said. "Right now they're short on guards and I think it's a great opportunity for me to come in and be able to play."
Shumpert's decision no doubt came as a shock to both MU and North Carolina fans, as it had been widely speculated that he would choose between one of those two schools. It is also a big blow to MU and coach Tom Crean, who invested a great deal in recruiting the 6-foot-4 combination guard from Oak Park, Ill.
Shumpert, ranked as the No. 15 overall senior prospect in the nation by Scout.com, phoned all three coaches just prior to announcing his decision.
"Extremely difficult," he said about addressing Crean and UNC coach Roy Williams. "I established a real good relationship with all three coaches. Really, all the coaches that recruited me. Everybody recruited me in a good way. I feel like when you develop those relationships it's hard to let them go. It was extremely difficult for me as a person to get on the phone and actually tell them no, even though I knew I had to tell somebody no."
So now it's back to the drawing board for MU, which suffered another recruiting hit a few weeks back when 6-10 Frank Ben-Eze chose to commit to Harvard.
Crean and the Golden Eagles will next turn their attention early next week to 6-7 wing Jared Swopshire, who is expected to choose between MU, Clemson and Louisville after taking a visit to Louisville over the weekend.
MU is also working hard on securing an official visit with fast-rising 6-10 Chris Otule of Fort Bend Bush High School in Richmond, Tex.
http://blogs.jsonline.com/muhoops/archive/2007/10/18/and-the-winner-of-the-iman-shumpert-sweepstakes-is.aspx