IU men’s basketball commit Khristian Lander has reclassified to the class of 2020, according to a report from 247Sports. IU received Lander’s Letter of Intent Monday morning.
“After a long talk with me and my family, we have decided that I will reclassify into the class of 2020 and I will be attending IU in the fall,” Lander told 247Sports.
This move has been anticipated since Lander’s commitment in late February. Lander said he wanted to reclassify soon after his commitment, but it would ultimately be decided by whether he could complete necessary credits in high school.
Lander is rated by 247Sports as a five-star prospect and as the top ranked point guard in the nation for the class of 2021. After his reclassification, IU now has the 13th ranked recruiting class for 2020 per 247Sports.
Lander’s coach at F.J. Reitz High School, Mike Adams, wasn’t completely in favor of this reclassification. Adams believed there was more for Lander to improve before making the jump to college and leaving early would erase the opportunity to chase awards like Indiana Mr. Basketball.
“He’s 17 years old, there’s still some maturity things that can happen and there are certain things in his game that could get better,” Adams told the Indiana Daily Student in February. “I personally just don’t think he’s quite ready.”
Lander joins an IU roster that will likely bring back all five starters, assuming rising senior forward Justin Smith takes his name out of the NBA Draft. Forward Trayce Jackson-Davis will return in the fall for his sophomore season and will now have ample help at the guard position with the arrival of Lander and presence of rising junior Rob Phinisee.
