TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida State men’s
basketball coach Leonard Hamilton has signed
another nationally ranked recruiting class as he
continues to transform his Seminole program into
one of the top teams in the ACC and the
nation. He announced the signing of forward
Xavier Gibson, guard Pierre Jordan, guard Luke Loucks and forward Chris Singleton to National
Letters of Intent to play basketball at Florida State.
“We are very, very happy to welcome this group of
young men into our program,” said Hamilton. “Individually they are all very
talented players who are team orientated and who
will fit in well with our current players. Collectively they are a group who will work together well and help us raise the level of
play on our team and help us continue to achieve
our goal of becoming a program of significance on the national level.”
Gibson (Dothan, Ala./Northview) is ranked as the
43rd best overall high school prospect in the
nation. He is also the No. 12 ranked prep center in the nation according to Scout.com. Gibson attends Northview High School in Duluth, Ga., and plays for the highly successful Georgia Blazers AAU
team.
“I am very happy to be a Seminole and I am glad
to be signed with Florida State,” said Gibson. “Coach Hamilton and his staff have a
great history of working with big men and I feel
that I will be able to achieve my goals as a
player and a person at Florida State. I am very
excited to have the chance to play and learn from Coach Hamilton.”
Gibson (6-10 and 230-pounds) selected Florida
State over Alabama, Florida and West Virginia.
“Xavier is a very determined and goal orientated
player,” said his high school coach Tyrone
Griffin. “We know that he is going to continue
to improve under Coach Hamilton and his
staff. He is very enthusiastic and doesn’t mind
working hard to achieve. He loves to have the
ball in his hands and is a strong player on both
the offensive and defensive ends of the floor.”
Jordan (Dunwoody, Ga./Dunwoody) is a three-star
recruit. As a junior at Dunwoody, Jordan was No. 2 in Dekalb County (Ga.) in steals average (3.4 spg) and ranked among the county leaders in assists (4.1 apg), three-point percentage (.430) and free throw percentage (.730).
“I made my choice to come to Florida State to
become the best player and the best person I can
be,” said Jordan. “I really feel that Coach
Hamilton and his staff will be great people to
play for and they will help me improve my
skills. I am excited to be a student at Florida
State and am looking forward to playing my collegiate career as a Seminole.”
Jordan (6-1 and 175 pounds) selected Florida
State over LSU, Central Florida and Butler.
“Pierre is one of the top point guards in the
state of Georgia,” said Dunwoody Head Coach Scott
Bracco. “He is a tremendous floor leader who
makes great decisions and makes everyone of his
teammates on the court a better player.”
Singleton (Dunwoody, Ga./Dunwoody) is ranked as
the 33rd best high school player in the nation entering the 2007-08 season. He is the No. 8 ranked power forward in the nation by Scout.com. Singleton attends Dunwoody High School and plays for the Atlanta Celtics AAU team.
Singleton (6-8 and 210 pounds) selected Florida
State over Kentucky in making his final choice of
which college to attend and play basketball.
“Chris is a tremendous athlete who creates huge
miss-match problem,” said Bracco. “He does a
great job playing on the perimeter and is a very good shooter.
“Florida State and Coach Hamilton made me feel
like I was part of the Seminole basketball family
from the beginning,” said Singleton. “Coach
Hamilton and his staff are great coaches who are
going to help me develop my skills in order to
help me continue to advance my career. I really
feel that with the coaching staff, the current
players and the players in my recruiting class
that we are going to win at Florida State. That is very exciting to me.”
Singleton and Jordan are teammates at Dunwoody
High School and on the Atlanta Celtics.
“Florida State is getting two quality basketball
players in Pierre Jordan and Chris Singleton,”
said Bracco. “Both players bring a great deal of
enthusiasm to the basketball court. They will
both prove to be great additions to the Seminoles basketball program.
Loucks (Clearwater, Fla./Clearwater) is ranked
78th in the nation among high school seniors and
as the 13th best point guard in the class of 2008. He averaged 14.0 points and 7.0 assists as a junior. Loucks is measured as a four-star recruit according to Rivals.com. Loucks became the first member of the Seminoles’ recruiting class when he committed to the Seminoles in June of 2007.
“This is a very exciting day for me because I am
officially a Seminole,” said Loucks. “Coach
Hamilton and is staff are bringing in a great
class and I can’t wait to come up and be a
Seminole. There were so many great reasons to
pick Florida State – from the style of play, to
the unbelievable coaching staff, to the
conference Florida State plays in – it is a great
place to play. The entire coaching staff has
either coached in or played in the NBA and they
know how to develop players to reach that
level. The players who I will be playing with
and the coaches I will be coached by will help me achieve my goals.”
Loucks (6-4 and 195 pounds) selected Florida
State over Georgia Tech and St. Joseph’s.
“Luke is one of the best passers I’ve ever
coached,” said Clearwater Head Coach Jack
Coit. “His ability to see the floor is one of
his strongest points. He is a true point guard
and has been a point guard his while life. Luke’s understanding of the game, willingness to be unselfish and his incredible desire to win are things that set him apart from most players. He is an exceptional person both on and off the court – academically, as a person and as a basketball player.”
Florida State, which averages more than 20 wins
and has advanced to the postseason in the last
two years, returns four starters and nine letter
winners for the 2007-08 season as it looks to
continue a five-year upswing of success under
Head Coach Leonard Hamilton into the 2007-08
season. The Seminoles defeated Nicholls State
and Georgia Southern in their first two games of the season.
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