Five-star recruit Karim Mane includes Pitt in top five

Jeff Capel and the Pitt coaching staff have been in pursuit of a handful of high-level targets this offseason, including five-star combo guard Karim Mane out of Montreal. On Friday, they made progress on that front, as Mane placed Pitt in his top five, according to Evan Daniels of 247Sports.

The other finalists for Mane include DePaul, Marquette, Memphis and Michigan State. And at this point, every program in Mane’s top five except for Memphis has guided him through a virtual visit of their school, and the only school that he has physically visited is Marquette.

The 6’5”, 195-pound guard holds five-star ratings from both 247Sports and Rivals as well as a four-star mark from ESPN. Of the three recruiting websites, 247Sports is the only one that has him ranked, and the website places him at No. 25 in the 2020 class and No. 5 at the combo guard position. Mane is one of just three 2020 recruits in the 247Sports top 25 who have yet to commit.

Along with announcing his top five, the recruit also commented on each of the schools he is considering. He had this to say about Pitt.

”Pittsburgh reached out not too long ago, but their main pitch to me is just that they want me to come in and have a big role on the team,” Mane said. “They didn’t specify that I would have a starting role or anything like that, but they just view me as a player that would prosper in their style of play and situation.”

Mane is also considering forgoing college and entering the professional ranks, as are many other blue-chip recruits in this year’s class. However, he has not been approached by the G League like other elite recruits have. Mane will have to decide whether he will enter the NBA draft or not by April 26. He told Daniels that the draft option was still on the table, and given that, he has not set a college decision date.