Recruiting: Summer brings a flurry of commitments

It's a topsy turvy world out there. College basketball recruiting has never been more complex, more competitive, more uncertain than it is right now. With the advent of the transfer portal, NIL deals (money for the use of a player's name, image and likeness) and a plethora of publicity for players of all stripes, it's not easy for prospects to make good choices. Since our last recruiting update in early July, we've seen 10 Minnesota players make Division 1 commitments, another 10 opt for the D2 route and at least four who will play NAIA basketball one year from now.

Here's the latest on Minnesota's college commitments based on the announcements we've seen.

CLASS OF 2027

Given the aforementioned challenges of the recruiting process, I think we're going to see more and more players announce their verbal commitment earlier. That's certainly what I would do. After two early announcements from 3rd-ranked Amisha Ramlall Amisha Ramlall 5'11" | CG Rosemount | 2027 State MN of Rosemount (University of Minnesota) and 8th-ranked Addison Bjorklund Addison Bjorklund 6'1" | PF Brainerd | 2027 State MN of Brainerd (University of North Dakota) we've watched four more incoming juniors announce their intentions as summer draws to a close. All are top 20 prospects. All are headed to the Summit League.

CLASS OF 2026

While the majority of the strongest prospects in the Class of 2026 have announced their college decision  (17 of the top 20), there are still some big names left on the board including 3rd-ranked Vienna Murray Vienna Murray 6'1" | SG East Ridge | 2026 State MN of East Ridge and 17th-ranked Marta Forsline Marta Forsline 6'3" | PF Mesabi East | 2026 State MN of Mesabi East, both of whom are weighing offers from a laundry list of schools. Murray's scheduled/completed visits this month include Florida, Iowa, Arizona State, Oklahoma and Missouri. So far we have 15 players committed at the D1 level led by #1 Maddyn Greenway Maddyn Greenway 5'8" | PG Providence Academy | 2026 State MN (Kentucky) and #2 Tori Oehrlein Tori Oehrlein 5'11" | CG Crosby-Ironton | 2026 State MN (Minnesota). Among those who have stated their intent in recent weeks are two more in the top 10 and six in total.

Division 2 Commitments

The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) just might be the deepest Division 2 conference in the country. Certainly, the recent national championship success of MSU-Mankato is notable, along with strong play from UM-Duluth, Southwest Minnesota State and Concordia-St. Paul. The 15-team league includes nine Minnesota programs, five in the Dakotas and one in Nebraska. In the Class of 2026 there have been 26 players commit at the D2 level so far, 22 of them in the NSIC.

MSU-Mankato had earlier commitments from #14 Brielle Janssen Brielle Janssen 6'1" | SF MACCRAY | 2026 State MN of MACCRAY, #18 Brooklyn Lewis Brooklyn Lewis 5'7" | PG New Ulm | 2026 State MN of New Ulm and #23 Brylee Miller Brylee Miller 6'0" | SF Fairmont | 2026 State MN of Fairmont, all from the Minnesota Rise AAU program. Recently they added big forward Amaya Pahl Amaya Pahl 6'0" | PF Lakeville South | 2026 State MN of Lakeville South. Here are the 10 Division 2 commitments since our last update.

NAIA Signings

The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) is perhaps the least-known but most-flexible alternative available to athletes. The biggest obstacle NAIA recruiters face is lack of familiarity. With no schools in Minnesota, kids here just don't know what they don't know. But there are several programs making inroads. Jamestown University in North Dakota has traditionally made bank on Minnesota kids, but they've moved up to the D2 ranks.

Other schools that have actively recruited here include Mayville and Valley City (North Dakota); Dakota State, Dakota Wesleyan, Mount Marty (South Dakota); along with Iowa institutions such as Morningside, Briar Cliff, Dordt, Waldorf and Grand View. Many NAIA schools offer full scholarships. Some cover tuition.

Here are some Minnesotans who made NAIA commitments over the past few weeks:

Here are four Minnesotans who made NAIA commitments over the past few weeks:

For the complete list of college commitments, subscribers have access to the prospect rankings by class. All committed players have their college logo included with their ranking.