KU Jayhawks, OU battling 2 other programs for highly-rated high school hoops guard

Rakease Passmore, a 6-foot-5, 190-pound senior shooting guard from Combine Academy in Lincolnton, North Carolina, has narrowed his list of prospective colleges to Kansas, Oklahoma, LSU and Arkansas, On3.com reported on Thursday.

Passmore made his announcement on social media platform X after a Thursday visit to his school by KU coach Bill Self. Coaches from LSU were slated to visit Passmore on Thursday night. Coaches from Oklahoma visited Combine Academy on Wednesday.

Originally from Palatka, Florida, Passmore is ranked No. 36 in the recruiting class of 2024 by Rivals.com, No. 48 by 247sports.com and No. 52 by ESPN.com.

He will visit Arkansas on Oct. 4-6. He is in the process of setting a date for a KU visit. He’s already been to Oklahoma and LSU.

Earlier he had Indiana, Oregon, Missouri, Wake Forest, Miami, North Carolina State, Tennessee, Georgia Tech, USC, Virginia, Iowa, Creighton, Houston and others on his list.

“I have a solid connection with the (KU) staff and they have a good plan drawn out for me if I were to come there. They have a history of getting guys to the next level and they feel like I can be one of those guys with my athleticism and shooting. They’ve been able to show me other guys with similar playing styles that they’ve helped become pros,” Passmore told On3.com.

Passmore played at A.C. Reynolds High School in Asheville, North Carolina, before transferring to Combine his junior season of high school. Passmore is a Team Thad AAU teammate of point guard Labaron Philon, who committed to KU on Monday.

Philon, a 6-foot-3, 175-pound senior point guard from Link Academy in Branson, Missouri, originally from Mobile, Alabama, chose KU over Cincinnati, Alabama and Mississippi. He is ranked No. 27 in the recruiting class of 2024 by 247Sports.com, No. 35 by ESPN.com and No. 38 by Rivals.com.

Passmore played quarterback as a youth in Florida until suffering a concussion in eighth grade. At that point he took up basketball.

“Rakease Passmore is a lengthy and highly explosive wing. At 6-5, there is talk of him having a 46-inch max vertical jump. When he gets a head of steam, he attacks the rim with bad intentions,” wrote Jamie Shaw of On3.com. “Passmore is much developed as a shooter. The release is high and consistent. There is a massive upside here, and the work is showing to reach his vast ceiling.”

Self visits McNeeley on Wednesday

KU’s Self had an in-home visit Wednesday with Liam McNeeley, a 6-8, 210-pound senior forward from Montverde (Florida) Academy, who has narrowed his list of prospective schools to KU and Indiana.

McNeeley, who is originally from Richardson, Texas, is ranked No. 9 in the recruiting cClass of 2024 by Rivals.com and 247sports.com and No. 13 by ESPN.com.

He originally had Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, Michigan, Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Iowa and others on his list. He has already visited both KU and Indiana. IU has been considered the favorite. Analysts expect a commitment to IU or KU soon.