(UPDATED: Tues. 9/24, 3:25 PM)
Rashad Vaughn – the nation’s top-ranked shooting guard in the class of 2014 – has postponed his upcoming official visit to North Carolina.
Vaughn, a 5-star recruit who recently transferred to Findlay Prep (Las Vegas, Nev.), was scheduled to be in Chapel Hill this weekend as he moves closer to making a college commitment.
Vaughn’s mentor, Pete Kaffey, said that Vaughn wanted to push back the visit and see a basketball game while on campus. Additionally, there was a question of how the Findlay Prep and UNC schedules would align.
“He wanted the parents to watch a basketball game,” Kaffey said.
“At first, (Vaughn) wanted to come out there early because of the Findlay Prep schedule. Now, there are some later dates that worked perfect (for both sides),” he added.
“And that’s why we decided to postpone.”
Despite the UNC postponement this weekend, there is no indication that Vaughn will postpone either of his scheduled official visits to Baylor (October 18th) and Iowa State (November 17th).
No other visits have been scheduled at this point, but UNLV and Kansas are likely to receive official visits before any decision is made.
Originally from New Hope, Minn., Vaughn announced his plans to transfer to Findlay Prep in July. Per a text from Kaffey on Tuesday afternoon, Vaughn has officially cut his list of potential schools to seven: UNC, Arizona, Minnesota, Iowa State, UNLV, Baylor, and Kansas.
Despite the fact that Vaughn is not currently doing interviews with media, many believe that Iowa State currently stands as a leader in the recruitment. However, Vaughn’s camp has repeatedly insisted that he remains open and will not make a decision anytime soon.
“Those are rumors,” Kaffey said. “There are no leaders.”
“If there was a leader, I think he would’ve been committed by now. Schools come and schools go. At the end of the day, I think it comes down to the relationship.
“He says will commit (to a school) when it feels right.”
As for Vaughn’s relationship with the coaching staff at UNC, Kaffey says it is a positive one.
“He likes Roy Williams and he likes Hubert Davis. Those guys have been great,” Kaffey said.
“He likes North Carolina…and they’re making a big push. He likes the system they run and the fact that they’ve got some pieces to the puzzle in terms of winning a championship.”
Vaughn has already been to UNC once. He attended the UNC-Duke men’s basketball game on March 9th as an unofficial visitor, a game the Tar Heels lost 69-53. The star guard received his scholarship offer from the Tar Heels in February.
Since his transfer to Findlay Prep, Kaffey says that Vaughn is becoming a more mature, well-rounded person off the court while continuing to improve and perfect his craft on the court. Vaughn practices every day against fellow five-star wing Kelly Oubre, who is likely headed to either Kansas or Kentucky.
“They’re being taught life lessons (at Findlay). They go to church Wednesdays and Sundays, they’re doing service projects. They’re becoming well-disciplined,” Kaffey said.
“It’s a great group of kids. One of best I’ve been around in my years of coaching.”
The news of Vaughn’s visit postponement comes just three days after UNC missed out on 4-star shooting guard Robert Johnson (Richmond, Va.), who committed to Indiana on Friday afternoon.
Roy Williams and staff are still looking to fill their fourth and final spot of the 2014 recruiting class with a shooting guard commitment. The class is currently ranked as the consensus No. 1 class in the country, with commitments from Top-25 prospects Justin Jackson (Houston, Texas), Theo Pinson (Greensboro, N.C.) and Joel Berry (Orlando, Fla.).
Aside from Vaughn, the Tar Heels have scholarship offers out to Former Indiana pledge James Blackmon (Marion, Ind.) and Australian star Dante Exum (Canberra, Australia). Neither Blackmon nor Exum have scheduled official visits to Chapel Hill at this point.
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