Coveted Wall close to picking school

09:46 AM ET 05.03 | The saga of John Wall's college recruitment seems to be winding down, though it may look like there is no end in sight. The 6-foot-4 Raleigh Word of God basketball point guard still has eight schools on his list and says there is no favorite, no leader. But when talking with him, he seems to be getting very close to deciding where he will go to school next year. There has never been a recruiting story like this one. Great players make college decisions every year, but few players have the explosiveness and the charisma of Wall. Wall is so talented that college fans easily project him as leading their team to national prominence, even a national championship. Wall might have the ability to lead Kentucky, Kansas, Florida or Duke to a national title next year. He possibly could lead Baylor or Miami to national prominence. He could keep Memphis in the national dialogue. He would sell lots of tickets and enter the program as a hometown hero at N.C. State. His recruiting process has been filled with twists and rumors, most of which he has no control over and some of which have been mean-spirited and cruel. Here's a few rumors and Wall's response: After Baylor created a coaching position for Dwon Clifton, Wall's club team coach, many assumed Wall was ticketed to Baylor. "I'm wide open," Wall said at the time. "Dwon and I never had that type of agreement." Wall contemplated playing in Europe rather than go to college. "No way, absolutely not. Where did that come from?" he said. Wall is a "one and done" player, someone who would play one year of college basketball and go to the NBA. "I never said that," Wall countered. One Web site had him down to North Carolina, Duke, Kentucky and Florida. "I haven't given anybody a list of leaders," Wall said. And Carolina had not offered him and was not recruiting him as of last Thursday. For 24 hours, it was a foregone conclusion that Wall was going to enter the draft this year. He was projected as a top 10 pick.

Charlotte Observer