Purdue catches a Dolphin
Young guard Anthony Johnson, widely considered one of the top five players in the state's 2010 class, gave an oral commitment to Purdue on Monday.
"Purdue has been showing me love from day one," Johnson said. "I liked the atmosphere, they have great coaches and great academics. It's close to home."
(Chris Sweda / Sun-Times)
Johnson, a 6-3 junior, is ranked 49th in the nation by Rivals and 32nd by Scout.
"It shows what a tremendous recruiter (Purdue coach) Matt Painter is," recruiting analyst Roy Schmidt said. "It was believed that Johnson would commit to Ohio State during the summer. When he didn't Purdue seized the opportunity."
Johnson is the fourth top-tier recruit in the class of 2010 to pick a Big Ten school. Waukegan's Jereme Richmond and Crane's Crandall Head are heading to Illinois and Zion-Benton's Lenzelle Smith chose Ohio State last month.
"That tells you how quickly the tide can turn," Schmidt said. "A year ago people were knocking the Big Ten left and right. Consensus was that Chicago area kids wanted to get away. How quickly that has changed, which is a testament to coaches throughout the Big Ten."
"The Big Ten didn't really play into my mind," Johnson said. "It just came down to Purdue had everything I wanted. If they were in the ACC or the Big East I still would have gone there."