Amir Coffey, the No. 1 target of the Gophers men's basketball team and the state's most lauded recruit, will announce his college destination on Monday afternoon, his father, Richard Coffey, told the Star Tribune on Sunday.
The 6-7 guard, who dominated in his junior season before sustaining a left ACL injury that kept him out the rest of the season, will hold a news conference at 3:30 p.m. at Hopkins High School to announce his choice from among the likes of Arizona, Baylor, Texas and five Big Ten schools — Minnesota, Wisconsin, Penn State, Michigan State and Indiana.
Coffey, who is ranked in the top 60 recruits nationally, officially visited his home-state school on Sept. 3 and was seen on the field at the Gophers football game against TCU. He had been scheduled to visit Texas over the weekend — the only other visit yet arranged — but canceled last week, multiple media outlets reported.
Coffey returned from his knee rehabilitation to participate in the Pacesetter Sweet Sixteen Basketball Championship in St. Cloud in August, averaging more than 25 points in four games.
The Gophers have been hard after Coffey, who would provide the kind of size and skill that Richard Pitino's teams have so far lacked. And with a season of projected struggles around the corner, getting Coffey would be a meaningful early victory for Pitino.
Minnesota has two remaining scholarships for the 2016 class after getting a commitment from Rochester's Michael Hurt last winter.
Coffey's father, Richard, was a four-year starter at Minnesota from 1986-90 before going on to play briefly with the Timberwolves and then overseas.