Ranking the Contenders: Four-star Dante Allen
It’s decision week for four-star guard Dante Allen, who is slated to announce his college choice on Oct. 16. The Florida-based standout will choose among Tennessee, Villanova and Georgia on Wednesday and has visited each school on his list of finalists.
Below, Rivals national analyst Rob Cassidy ranks the three contenders in the race to land Allen’s commitment in order of how likely each is to come out on top.
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1. VILLANOVA
Allen is a Villanova legacy recruit, but the fact that his father, Malik Allen, played his college ball at the school isn’t why the Wildcats top this list. Sure, the connection plays a part, but the work head coach Kyle Neptune put in to position himself well with Allen despite the fact that the program has hovered around the .500 mark for the last two seasons is commendable to say the least.
Neptune and his staff hosted Allen for an official visit back in June, but the four-star guard has been on campus on other occasions as well. All accounts are that the Wildcats hold a lead as the Montverde Academy product hits the final stretch of his process, but nothing in recruiting is ever set in stone.
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2. GEORGIA
Georgia hosted Allen for an official visit last month and that trip seemed to make a big impression at the time. That said, things seem to have cooled between the two sides in the weeks since the visit wrapped up, leaving the Bulldogs in a decided second place.
There’s still time for late movement, but sources indicate UGA has some serious ground to make up during the final stretch should it hope to land the speedy guard’s pledge on decision day.
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3. TENNESSEE
Rick Barnes and staff managed to intrigue Allen by comparing his possible role at Tennessee to that of both Derrick White and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Allen visited Tennessee in late August but smoke linking him to the Vols has been thinning in the months since.
There was a time when Tennessee looked not only like a threat to land Allen but the possible front-runner. Those days seem over, however, as Allen landing in Knoxville would now be viewed as more than a small surprise.
