Basketball

WILLIAMS: Lindell Wigginton reacts to his five-star rating

Prior to yesterday’s refreshed college basketball ratings from Rivals.com, I had already scheduled a lengthy phone interview with the prized possession of Iowa State’s 2017 recruiting class, Lindell Wigginton.

You will be able to read that full interview in feature form next week but until then, I had to ask about Wigginton being elevated to a 5-star recruit – the first to sign with Iowa State since Craig Brackins in 2007.

Lindell, who is an incredible well-spoken young man, is taking it all in stride.

“I means something to me because I worked really hard but it is more for the fans,” Wigginton said. “But I will continue to be the same player that I am.”

He was being humble so I pressed, as any obnoxious journalists would do. The coveted 5-star rating is rare and coming off of an impressive showing at the Nike Hoops Summit last week where hundreds of scouts were in attendance, it had to give Wigginton at least a little validation, no?

“It’s a bonus for me,” Wigginton admitted. “It is just showing that all of my hard work is paying off. The recognition for what I have been doing is nice but I will continue to be the same player I have always been.”

Great kid. I spoke to Lindell for 20 minutes on Wednesday night and could not have come away more impressed with everything that he had to say about not only his game, but the future of Iowa State basketball.

@cyclonefanatic