Juwan Durham to UConn: Huskies Land 4-Star PF Prospect

An ACL tear put Juwan Durham's high school career on hold and left some wondering if top programs would still pursue him. Connecticut was undeterred and rewarded for its faith Tuesday, as the 4-star forward announced his intention to be a Husky on Twitter:

Durham, a long power forward out of Tampa Preparatory School, chose Connecticut over offers from Florida, Louisville and Kansas, among others. The Gators were considered favorites throughout the process, with 247Sports giving them a 60 percent chance of landing him at one point, but UConn had closed of late. By Tuesday's announcement the two schools were considered co-favorites. 

Nearly everything ground to a halt in February when Durham suffered a torn ACL in state playoffs. He averaged 22.9 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.7 blocks per game as a junior, but his game was predicated on athleticism and length. Potentially taking one of those advantages away threw a bit of a monkey wrench into what was expected to be a hotly contested recruitment.    

He's currently expected to return to the floor in September or October. 

"It could be sooner than that the way things are going," head coach Joe Fenlon said, per Bob Putnam of the Tampa Bay Times. "But we certainly are not trying to rush anything. Juwan has too much at stake and too much a future ahead of him to push anything too hard. I'd be ecstatic if he were able to be back with us by September or October. Right now, everything is moving in the right direction."

When healthy, Durham shows flashes of becoming a special talent. He's listed at 6'11" with good athleticism and a long wingspan that allows him to block a ton of shots. Despite being known largely as a finisher, Durham has also flashed a decent jumper and gets buckets by picking up offensive rebounds.

The injury is largely a concern because it'll prohibit him from working on the weaknesses in his game. He's still extremely skinny at 200 pounds, and it wouldn't be advisable for him to put on weight while recovering from a major leg injury. Being off the court also won't help the development of that jumper, which will be key once NBA talent evaluators start assessing his game.

That said, it's hard to quibble with head coach Kevin Ollie landing a 4-star recruit at this early juncture. Here's to Durham getting back on the court soon and reminding folks why he was so coveted to begin with.

Star rankings courtesy of 247Sports. Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter.