The Big Blue Nation has the inside track over Miles Bridges, a 5-star small forward from Michigan.
Miles Bridges seems like an enigma, since his ranking varies from no.7 in the ESPN 100 list while Rivals has him at no.24. Still, he is a 5-star rated talent that most teams would covet.
However, that list has been whittled down to five schools as he has announced the final schools left in the running. He chose two top recruiting programs, two local powerhouses and one dark horse.
Kentucky and North Carolina hope to build top recruiting classes in 2016 while both Michigan and Michigan State hope to keep Bridges within state boundaries, and Indiana also hopes to propel itself back in the top echelons of college recruiting.
Miles Bridges can play a significant role in those storylines. He told SB Nation (via Spartan Avenue) that he hopes to make a decision by December. The article also revealed some interesting keys to Bridges' possible choice.
The Michigan State Spartans' coach Tom Izzo has been recruiting him "since 10th grade" and that may be a factor. He has also been talking with Draymond Green, Spartan alumni who won an NBA title with the Golden State Warriors.
IndyStar talked to Jerry Meyer of 247 Sports and he had the grim (for Hoosier fans) prediction that Bridges might go to Kentucky. He also mentioned that the swingman's three point shooting has pushed him up the rankings after the recently concluded Peach Jam, Nike's biggest event of the summer.
Bridges shot 43% in the event and it changed the impression that he was nothing more than a power-playing swingman, as Meyer stated:
"The shooting - it just gives him another dimension that is enormous," Meyer noted. "You can't play off of him. You have to respect his shot. He's shooting with confidence right now, and that's the big difference."