Minnesota basketball picks up commitment from in-state forward prospect
Minnesota added to its 2022 recruiting class on Sunday.
Forward Pharrel Payne officially committed to play for coach Ben Johnson and the Gophers. Here’s his announcement:
https://twitter.com/pharrelpayne/status/1429526299069067273
Payne is a 6-foot-9 power forward from Cottage Grove, Minnesota. He attends Park Senior High School and is listed at 230 pounds.
He doesn’t have a 247Sports rating yet, which could be due to the 2022’s class altered evaluation process during the pandemic. Payne does hold offers from programs such as Drake, St. Louis and Loyola-Chicago. Payne also picked up a Texas A&M offer back in July, per 247Sports.
Payne is Minnesota’s second commitment in the class of 2022, joining fellow Minnesota native Braeden Carrington.
Minnesota went 14-15 last season and parted ways with coach Richard Pitino at the end of the year. Johnson will try to lead the Gophers to their first NCAA Tournament since 2018-19.