Looking to add size to the Class of 2017, Florida Gators basketball on Monday accepted a commitment from forward Chase Johnson (Huntington, WV).
Rated as the 161st overall player in the class by 247Sports, Johnson was originally a four-star prospect who was recently downgraded to three stars. At 6-foot-8 and 205 pounds, he is the largest member of Florida’s three-man recruiting class, which includes four-star guard Shai Alexander (Chattanooga, NT) and four-star F DeAundrae Ballard (Atlanta, GA).
“Excited to Say I’ve committed to the University of Florida,” Johnson wrote Monday on Twitter.
As a junior at Ripley High School — he has since transferred to Huntington Prep School — Johnson averaged 17.1 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. He posted averages of 18.3 points and 8.5 boards per game during his sophomore season.
Johnson’s recruitment took a turn over the summer when he reversed course on plans to attend prep school and reclassify to be a part of the 2018 class. He held offers from Arizona, Clemson, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia — in addition to Florida — but obviously felt most at home with the Gators after visiting the program in mid-September.