Andy Kimball
Editor-In-Chief
Junior Carte’Are Gordon committed to play basketball at Saint Louis University via Twitter Wednesday morning.
On Tuesday night Gordon announced his three finalists: SLU, Kansas University, and the University of Missouri.
About why he picked SLU, Gordon said, “I wanted to stay close to home. I have a good relationship with the coaches, and I just want to represent my city.”
Gordon added, “They got the new coach, Travis Ford. He’s coached a lot of high level players. He has coached a couple of NBA pros and the opportunities and the style of play that they are going to be playing when I get there is going to give me a chance to showcase my skills.”
Ford has coached six NBA players including Marcus Smart of the Celtics and Markel Brown of the Brooklyn Nets.
A coach who recruited Gordon was SLU assistant Cory Tate, who grew up in Saint Louis and helps coach Amatueur Athletic Union basketball in Saint Louis.
Gordon said, “He’s the coach that mainly recruited me. I’ve got a good relationship with him he is a good guy. I have good relationships with him and Coach Ford.”
Gordon will join Althoff Catholic senior Jordan Goodwin as SLU’s second nationally ranked recruit from Saint Louis.
“I’m good friends with him. I knew him before he committed. We’ve been good pals for awhile so that was definitely a big part of my commitment,” Gordon said.
Goodwin is ranked no. 57 in the class of 2017, and Gordon is the ninth-ranked player in the class of 2018. Gordon is the highest ranked player in the 2018 class to commit to a school.
Gordon said he committed early “because I just knew I wanted to be here. The recruiting process is a long process, so I just want to be focused on one thing this year after I’m finished, which is getting a State championship.”
Before he can get that State championship, Gordon will have to serve the rest of a 365-day waiting period that was required of him by MSHSAA policy after he transferred from Vianney back to his hometown of Webster last season. He will be eligible to play his first game in a Statesmen uniform in late January, about halfway through the season.
Gordon also said he has talked to Webster’s other nationally ranked prospect, junior guard Courtney Ramey, about SLU.
“Yea, I talk to him all the time about it. He said he is considering them but he is not sure. But I’m going to keep talking to him,” Gordon said.
