Nate Ament is down to five finalists — Duke, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas and Louisville — and is expected to make his decision “in the next week or two.” The five-star power forward out of Warrenton (Va.) Highland School rates as the No. 4 overall prospect and No. 2 power forward in the class of 2025. He is the only uncommitted top-25 recruit.
“He’s taken visits to every single program,” national recruiting analyst Travis Branham said, via the “College Basketball Show” on Tuesday. “He’s basically learned absolutely everything there is to know about each of his five finalists. There’s been some movement over the last couple of weeks. I’ve heard that Louisville and Arkansas are fading to the background. It’s really down to Duke, Tennessee and Kentucky, in that order.”
Duke has long been seen as the favorite in Ament’s recruiting, and a commitment to the Blue Devils would secure Jon Scheyer the top recruiting class in the country for the third time in four recruiting cycles. However, Tennessee has made a late surge in recent weeks and is giving the college basketball blue blood a run for its money, according to Finkelstein.
“Tennessee is a school that I’m keeping a close eye on,” Branham said. “They continue to pick up more and more buzz. They’ve gained traction in this recruitment. They’ve moved up and are nipping at the heels of Duke to ultimately land Nate Ament. There’s been talks of a decision being made in the next two weeks. But that’s basically what we’ve been hearing for the last month and a half. As these rosters continue to take shape with some looming transfer decisions, we’ll start to get a better idea of where Ament will land.”
Ament led Highland School to a 42-7 record and the VISAA Division I state title as a senior. The 6-foot-10, 190-pounder averaged 18.9 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 blocks. He played 21 minutes for the East Team in the McDonald’s All-America game and scored 12 points on 3-of-6 shooting and rounded out the box score with three rebounds, an assist and a steal.
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“Ament is one of the best long-term prospects in the country,” Finkelstein wrote in Ament’s scouting report. “He’s an immense talent and still in the early stages of putting it all together. He has good positional size for a face-up forward at over 6-foot-9 with an elastic body type. What’s glaring about Ament is just how much potential he has to get better. All the tools are in place for him to evolve into a skilled and smooth 6-foot-9-plus perimeter forward who is a true three-range scoring threat. He has as high a long-term upside as potentially anyone in the class.”