LAS VEGAS — At 6 feet 2 inches entering his freshman year of high school, Chance Comanche wasn’t a whole lot different than many athletically minded kids.
“I tried all sports,” Comanche said. “Football, basketball, soccer — every sport seemed well-suited.”
That changed by the end of Comanche’s freshman year at St. Bernard High School in Playa Del Rey, California. The UA recruiting target from the class of 2015 grew to 6-9.
That’s right. More than half a foot in less than a year.
Suddenly, basketball was the focus.
“One of the (school) coaches said, ‘Come to the practice and see how you do,’ ” Comanche said. “I went out, and he said I could be great.”
So far, that much is not hyperbole. With long arms and a wiry, athletic 6-11 frame, Comanche is rated a 5-star prospect by both Scout and Rivals, and 24/7 Sports and ESPN have him as a 4-star.
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Arizona has also made him a top priority in the class of 2015, along with other big men such as Ivan Rabb, Stephen Zimmerman and Chase Jeter. Comanche has returned the interest, scheduling his first official visit (Sept. 13) to Arizona, though he said he will likely take his allotted five official visits before making a decision.
Comanche said UA and UCLA are currently recruiting him the hardest, and he is also considering ASU, USC, California, Connecticut and N.C. State.
“I’ve always liked the school,” Comanche said of Arizona. “They have a good team and great coaches. Sean Miller and (associate head coach Joe) Pasternack are great guys.”
Comanche might even be the most likely of UA’s top big men priorities to become a Wildcat. According to 24/7’s “Crystal Ball,” 91 percent of analysts are predicting Comanche will head to UA, 68 percent say Rabb will, 50 percent have Zimmerman picking UA, and none have Jeter doing so (96 percent say Jeter will sign with Duke). Rabb also added intrigue to his situation when he told Zagsblog he has been “irritated” that people assume he’s headed for UA because he plays travel-ball for the Oakland Soldiers, who also produced Wildcats such as Nick Johnson, Brandon Ashley, Josiah Turner and Aaron Gordon.
Comanche and Zimmerman actually had a chance to go head to head on Wednesday night in the Bigfoot Las Vegas Classic showcase, with Comanche scoring 10 points while helping his Earl Watson Elite team to a 70-58 clubbing of the usually powerful Soldiers.
“That was a big win for us. We weren’t supposed to beat them, but we played as tough as we could and came out with a win,” Comanche said, adding of Zimmerman: “They say he’s one of the top big men, so I want to see if I can hold my own against him or go at him, and do better than him.”
Then again, the result might have been different had Rabb been in his usual spot on the floor with the Soldiers. Instead, Rabb was heading to Colorado Springs, Colorado, for USA Basketball U17 World Championship team tryouts.
“Of course” it mattered, Zimmerman said. “Ivan’s one of the best players in the country, and at the beginning of the game he always changes it.
“I think it’s fun playing with him. I like to think it’s hard to stop both of us. It’s a sad thing that he can’t be here this tournament.”
At the same time, Zimmerman can hardly blame Rabb. Zimmerman has good memories of his USA Basketball experience earlier this summer, coasting to a gold medal in the FIBA U18 Americas Championship, for a team that had Miller as an assistant coach.
“It was amazing,” Zimmerman said. “There were all those great players, and to play for my country was great. It was crazy. Nobody wanted to lose.”
