Is Isiaih Mosley a realistic option?

It was just last weekend where I posted about one of Cuonzo Martin’s biggest mistake might have been not signing Isiaih Mosley. Last week, Mosely seemed focused on landing at either Mississippi State, or possibly Kansas or Texas Tech, maybe Georgia Tech... Missouri had made an initial call and were told Mosley was looking elsewhere.

If you want a recap on who Mosley is, he’s a Columbia, MO native who played his high school basketball at Rock Bridge High School. While at Rock Bridge he won a state championship, and held an offer from Missouri. But, for whatever reason, Cuonzo Martin and his staff didn’t pursue the 2019 prospect. Instead, Mosley’s high major interest wained a bit and he ended up following his high school teammate Ja’Monte Black to Missouri State. He then proceeded to light up the Missouri Valley Conference for three years. Culminating in his junior season where he put up 20.4 points per game, 6.2 rebounds, on 50.4% shooting from the field. Mosley shot over 40% from 3-point range and 90% from the FT line.

Once Mosley hit the portal he was a hot commodity. Missouri fans were intrigued. Mosley fit what Dennis Gates was needing on the roster. He was a shooter, and capable of generating his own offense from the wing. That role was strikingly absent despite the offseason overhaul, and finding a true scoring threat on the wing is something that has largely been missing from the roster for the last few years. So it would make sense that Missouri would pursue.

And I’d like to reiterate. As of the middle of this past week the idea of Mosley landing at Mizzou didn’t seem remote, it was less than a pipe dream. But...

But. Sometimes if you wait long enough options dry up. Kansas took Kevin McCuellar. Texas Tech looks locked in on Kerwin Walton. Spots have filled up. And even Mississippi State, where Mosley seemed like a lock for a while, has reportedly moved on. Whether that was MSU or Mosley, that’s always murky. But the end result is this... Missouri has a shot.

A couple days ago we received some intel that the idea of Mosley to Mizzou wasn’t dead. Mosley has been in contact with Missouri, with a visit happening as recent as this weekend. Now it’s worth pointing out how easy it is for Mosley to “visit” a school that’s within a reasonable walk from his childhood house. So if Mosley was home, and he ran into anyone from the Mizzou coaching staff, that’s convenient. If someone with access opened a practice gym that could constitute an unofficial visit, if a few coaches stopped by.

Point being, this may amount to nothing. As we’ve seen this spring there are a lot of sure things that turn out to be anything but (hello Jamarion!).

In a lot of ways this reminds me of several recruitments during the Cuonzo Martin era. There would be an anti-buzz around a prospect going to Missouri, and then for some reason things would get resurrected from the dead. We’d pen an article about how now Missouri has a chance! Before the recruit went elsewhere.

That’s recruiting in a nutshell though. Mosley’s options have dried up a bit. He’s looking for a place where he can be featured. Mizzou needs a wing to feature. Now it seems like Isiaih Mosley, the hometown kid, is a real option.