Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones, and Justice Winslow to visit Baylor together

This morning, the #2 player in the country for 2014, C Jahlil Okafor, publicly cut his list to 8 schools from basically everyone in the country. Baylor made that cut along with Duke, Ohio State, UNC, Kentucky, Arizona, Illinois, and Kansas. Of those 8, CBSSports reports that 5 visited Okafor during the spring at his home: Baylor, Duke, Michigan State, Kansas, and Ohio State.

Baylor making this list is not entirely a surprise given that you don't get to visit someone in their home unless they want you to. The fact that we did probably shows he's at least somewhat interested in our program. What is a surprise is something we found out shortly thereafter: that Okafor will be visiting Baylor on the weekend beginning August 30, 2013, and he will not be visiting alone. According to 247Sports, consensus top-10 talents Tyus Jones (PG, #4 in the country) and Justice Winslow (SF, #7) will visit with him, comprising the most-talented group of recruits ever to set foot on our campus for any sport. Aside from the obvious fact that getting talented players to visit makes it at least somewhat more likely that you will convince them to stay, this group visit is notable in that there are increasing rumors about the possibility of a package deal, either with Jones/Okafor or all three together.

Before you go running off saying that I'm predicting Baylor gets a package deal from these three guys (which would clearly be the best recruiting class in our history, and one of the 10 best ever for anyone), I'm not. I'm really not. I'm just noting the possibility, mentioned in the CBSSports link above and by ESPN's Dave Telep on twitter, that the three might want to play together. Should they do that, as Telep notes, four schools currently exist on all three players' lists: Baylor, Duke, Kansas, and Ohio State. That's pretty rarefied air.

In talking with Jeff C., who covers Texas and Kentucky recruiting for the respective SB Nation sites, on twitter, he gave me an off-the-cuff prediction of all three guys going to Duke to counter the incredible class UNC is putting together. In all likelihood, he's probably right. I wouldn't bet money on it, but I wouldn't bet against it, either. Still, the possibility exists that Baylor can make such an impression on these guys when they come in August that something positive happens. And that's about as much as we can ask for.

Let's hope they enjoy us beating the absolute crap out of Wofford that Saturday.