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When the summer started in 2020,
Jonas Aidoo was completely off the radar nationally and had yet to receive much attention by programs in the Hoop State. But after developing his game during the offseason and returning to the court with Team Curry, Aidoo immediately saw his stock skyrocket, leading to five high-major offers after his first weekend on the court.
Since then, the 6-foot-11, 215-pound center has added nearly 20 more offers to the mix, forcing him to finally cut the list down to 10 programs. That list included NC State, Kansas, Tennessee, Wake Forest, Miami, Georgia, Marquette, South Carolina, Providence and Houston back on Halloween.
"It kind of all happened at once, but after the first tournament I started to get some notice," Aidoo said of his rise this summer. "At the second tournament, that’s when the offers started to come and schools started to take notice and start patching in and stuff. Some schools took longer than others to offer, but it was kind of all near the same time, just a little bit spread out."
The Wolfpack was one of those schools that waited to get in the mix, but kept close contact with him throughout the summer before offering on Sept. 21. Tennessee and Kansas were the only schools to offer later than the Pack and still make the 10-team cut for Aidoo.
While State waited to get in the mix, Aidoo has always left the line of communication open with Keatts and the rest of the staff. James Johnson is the primary recruiter for Aidoo, but he has kept in close contact with the entire staff since receiving the offer.
"We talk on a weekly basis," Aidoo said. "We’ve spent a lot of time talking about their situation and what they are doing. It’s really just checking up on me and stuff like that. It’s just building a relationship."
Recently transferring to Charlotte (N.C.) Liberty Heights Athletic Institute, Aidoo has seen his stock as a recruit continue to rise. After entering the 247Sports rankings as the No. 218 player in the country with a three-star rating on Aug. 30, Aidoo has already risen to the No. 90 overall spot and the No. 16 center in the country.
When it comes to his fit in the system, Aidoo would be more of a versatile big for Keatts, similar to the likes of D.J. Funderburk. But after just one year of Keatts truly utilizing two bigs on the floor at the same time, Aidoo is taking more of a wait-and-see approach with the Wolfpack -- something he's planning on doing with every team that made his Top 10.
"I want to wait until Nov. 25 when the season starts, and then I can break down how they really play," Aidoo said of how he thinks he fits into Keatts' system. "He’s just checking up on me. It’s a good relationship. It’s still growing. We’re still bonding together."
There's no definitive timeline for Aidoo at this point, but he said he plans to narrow down his list and potentially make a decision in January before signing in April."
