UConn back in mix for flip-flopper Harkless

(via vmedia.rivals.com)

Recruiting is a hell of a drug.

Nearly a month ago, not long after the NCAA put Coach Cal and the Huskies on notice, Maurice Harkless, a Class of 2011 four-star small forward out of Queens, decommitted from UConn. 

Harkless, the No. 19 small forward and No. 86 player in '11 per Rivals, talked to ZagsBlog at the time about his decision:

"I want to just reopen my recruitment," Harkless told SNY.tv exclusively Monday morning by phone. "I just want to make sure UConn is still the right choice and explore my other options.

[...]

"There’s a lot going on with the whole investigation thing. That’s not really a major factor. It’s a part of it. I just don’t feel comfortable closing every other option."

Harkless' decision isn't an uncommon one in the shady underworld that is high school recruiting; tons of kids, usually under-the-radar prospects that, for whatever reason, begin to receive more attention for higher-profile places, waffle or reconsider. 

But more often than not, a player who decommits ends up at a different place.

Maurice Harkless cares not for the meaning of "more often than not."

According to Harkless hanger-on and apparent Gwen Stefani enthusiast Nate Blue, the Huskies are now back in the mix.

One more time, ZagsBlog:

"Uconn is back on the list for @moe_harkless tell me this recruiting thing isnt bananas,"Nate Blue, Harkless’ mentor, wrote on Twitter.

Problem is, there are 15 other schools (including eight from the Big East) that are on that list, too. Along with UConn, Blue says Harkless is also considering Arizona, Memphis, St. John’s, Georgetown, Miami, South Florida, Rutgers, Xavier, Virginia, Maryland, Syracuse, Temple, Pitt, Providence and Cincinnati.

So, to recap, a fairly good prospect that at one point pledged his allegiance to the United States of Calmerica is no longer committed to UConn but is still considering it along with most other D-I basketball programs in the northeast. 

Recruiting is a hell of a drug.