After UVa visit, four-star guard Dunn still weighing decision
Ryan Dunn is not yet sure what the deciding factor will be when he chooses where he’ll play college basketball but he believes when it happens, he will know.
“I think when I feel it I will know it,” the four-star shooting guard told CavsCorner on Monday. “I’m a big believer on signs so once I get that feeling like, ‘Yeah I can see myself here, this is where I want to be at,’ I’ll probably get to it and let them know.”
Dunn was just in Charlottesville with his parents this past weekend for a visit with Tony Bennett and Virginia. UVa was one of eight teams to make the cut when Dunn announced his top eight last month, along with Boston College, Georgetown, Maryland, Minnesota, Oklahoma State, Pitt and South Carolina.
The top 150 prospect from Pennsburg (PA) Perkiomen School said he loved Virginia’s campus and enjoyed watching the UVa football team roll past Illinois. He also had praise for Bennett and assistant Orlando Vandross, as well as the rest of the UVa staff and current players.
His conversation with Bennett included discussions of how Dunn could potentially fit with the Wahoos and ways he could improve before getting to college. Dunn said Bennett sees him as a “skilled wing.”
“He knows I need to get stronger so he may need to get me in the weight room a little bit more,” he recounted. “Me being a wing for him, because he said he might need a wing for the next class.”
UVa was the third of his top eight schools that Dunn and his parents had visited in recent weeks. He spoke highly of the family vibe he got from Jeff Capel and the rest of the coaching staff at Pitt, as well as the Panthers’ facilities and the city life the school would offer. At Minnesota, he liked the atmosphere strong fan support that was on display at the Golden Gophers’ football game against Ohio State, and called new coach Ben Johnson and his staff “good people.”
Dunn is now working with his parents to figure out which school he wants to get to next. As of Monday, he didn’t have any additional visits lined up.
“I thought I would get a little bit more relaxed but it kind of got a little bit crazier,” he said of the recruiting process since trimming his list. “Just going on visits and stuff, because I’ve got a really good eight schools now and I’ve got to figure out which one I want to go to. It’s just hard to figure out the right one for me now but it’s been fun also, just going to see all these great coaches. It’s been good.”
Dunn saw his recruiting stock shoot up this summer after growing as a player—both figuratively and literally—over the past year. He says he’s gotten both stronger and quicker, and his ball handling and shooting have both improved.
And then there was his growth spurt last winter. Dunn says a year ago he probably measured at 6-foot-4 and weighed 150 pounds; now he’s up to 6-foot-7 and 190 pounds. That added size has allowed him to see the game differently. He’s worked on being a better player with his back to the basket, and on capitalizing when being guarded by smaller guards while still having the quickness to stay in front of big guards.
“I’m way more versatile,” Dunn said. “Not being as tall, it was kind of hard for me. I couldn’t get to where I wanted to get to because I would just get bumped. I couldn’t be physical.”
Growing those three extra inches also changed the way college coaches looked at his potential. This summer they saw a 6-foot-7 with guard skills. Once the July live period started, offers from high major programs started rolling in. He jumped into the Rivals150 at No. 112 in the most recent update to those class of 2022 rankings last month.
Among his top eight, Minnesota was the first to offer on July 3rd, followed by Boston College the next day. Pitt and Oklahoma State jumped in about a week later, then South Carolina and UVa in late July. Offers from Georgetown and Maryland came in early August, shortly before Dunn trimmed his list. Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Clemson and Marquette were among the programs that didn’t make the cut.
“I just want to find a school that can help me be the best person I can be, on and off the floor,” Dunn said. “At the end of the day it’s about where I can get to after college so I’m focused on what’s the best fit for me.”
Almost a month after trimming his list, he feels closer to a decision but still trying to weigh all of his options. Right now his plan is to make a decision by late September or early October, but Dunn admits he’s still trying to figure out which school would be his best fit.
“It sucks that I’m gonna have to call a lot of them and say I won’t be going to your school,” he said, “but I think after I do that, I’m gonna be really stoked. I never really thought I would be where I’ll be right now when I was younger so for me, being in this situation I’m really excited.”
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