Recruiting Report: Chris Lykes (2017)
Chris Lykes, a rising senior point guard for Gonzaga College High School and Team Takeover, ended his recruitment on Sunday evening with a pledge to the University of Miami. The dynamic young floor general, who is averaging 20 points, 3 assists, and 1.6 steals per game while shooting almost 50% field goals on Nike’s EYBL Circuit, was featured in Charlottesville along with a handful of other DMV natives at the 2016 NBPA Top 100 Camp.
“Overall, I had a great time out there. I like playing with these guys,” Lykes said about his first experience at Top 100 Camp. “They wanna win just as bad as I do. And we got coach John Lucas who’s just as passionate about winning. It’s fun to play out here.”
Lykes averaged 22 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists during his junior season at Gonzaga. The exciting lead guard connected on 95 threes in 34 games. Chris exhibits an extra gear which gives him the ability to create from just about anywhere he wants to on the court. He saw his recruitment expand as a result of his consistent high level production. Schools such as Georgetown, Villanova, Notre Dame, Virginia, and NC State got involved by offering him scholarships. But it appears that Canes Head Coach Jim Larranaga and his staff beat them all to the punch.
Glad to be a part of the family❗️🙏🏽 🙌🏾 #UMiami @miamibasketball pic.twitter.com/TMtgF7VuGR
— Chris Lykes (@IAm_Lykesdat) June 13, 2016
“Miami was the first high major school to offer me. I’ve been in contact with coach L and coach Brunt for almost 2 years now.” Lykes explained. “What they do that appeals to me is that they run a lot of ball screens. I think coach L told me they ran about 900 ball screens last year and that’s something I can excel in.
Another thing which appealed to Chris about Miami was their engineering program. That is something he is interested in studying, and helped him solidify his decision to pull the trigger early. What can Hurricane fans expect from the electrifying playmaker? A hard-working, exciting young man who likes to get guys involved.
“With my speed and quickness, I think I would be able to do a good job getting into the paint and finding open guys,” Lykes stated. “At that level you’re going to be playing with guys who are very good at what they do. Being able to get to the spot that I want to is something I take pride in. I think I can excel at that program.”
Now that his recruitment is over, Chris is focused on getting his body and mind ready for the next level. Given the level of competition he will be facing this week at NBPA Top 100 and in July at Peach Jam, not to mention during his senior year in the WCAC, he’ll get an opportunity to compete with and against some of the guys who he can expect to see in the ACC.
“I just wanna get better. Prepare myself. Get my body ready,” said Lykes. “Even though it’s like a year or two away, getting myself prepared for that type of contact now is important. Getting better every day doing the things that I need to do to improve myself as a player and as a person. Just competing with these guys out here is gonna get you better.”