He was always unlikely to go to another college.The NCAA Committee on Infractions earlier this month placed Oklahoma State on three years of probation and Oklahoma State has said it is appealing the NCAA penalties. 2 in the ESPN 100. "He's been my biggest life coach besides my parents. Cunningham, one of the nation's top basketball recruits, has chosen to remain at Oklahoma State despite the program being banned from the 2021 postseason. "He's been my biggest life coach besides my parents. 1 NBA draft pick Cade Cunningham announced Monday that he is sticking with his commitment to Oklahoma State despite the NCAA giving the Cowboys a postseason ban for next season. I just wanted to make sure that he was clear that I wasn't gonna try and insert an agenda on him. 1 in the Rivals and 247Sports recruiting rankings for his class and No. Cunningham was impressed with the way Boynton approached him after the NCAA handed down its decision. "Cunningham said having his brother, Cannen, on the Oklahoma State staff played a secondary role in his decision to stay. "My brother has been one of my biggest influences in life," Cade Cunningham said. Cunningham won the Naismith High School Trophy given to the nation's best player. 1 in the Rivals and 247Sports recruiting rankings for his class and No. "After kind of settling down and really looking into everything, at the end of the day, Coach Boynton's who I wanted to play for. So being around him for another year was super important to me, but I feel like him being there was just a cherry on top." Jalen Green finished No. And I'll be perfectly honest -- and I was with some of the rest of the guys on the team -- he probably had the most options of anybody else in this conversation, including me. Cunningham had considered other options over the past couple of weeks, including the G League and professional routes overseas, sources told ESPN. "I think he felt most comfortable that moving forward, if he was gonna do anything with anybody, it was gonna be here with this group, with his family being a part of it, and thankfully with me being his head coach. "But the conversations the last couple weeks were really about all the options that he had. He was named Naismith National High School Player of the Year this season after leading Montverde Academy (Florida) to a 25-0 record. "I think it's important, but I'm not going to get my hopes up," Cunningham said.

"I still feel like there's so much that we can accomplish as a team to impact the future. Oklahoma State is appealing the ban. "I've talked to Cade probably more in the last four years than anybody outside of his family," Boynton said Monday on a conference call. He averaged 23.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.7 assists on the Nike EYBL circuit last spring and summer for the Texas Titans grassroots program, and won a gold medal with the USA Basketball U19 National Team, averaging 11.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.7 assists at the 2019 FIBA U19 World Cup.Cunningham is the top-ranked recruit in program history.Cade Cunningham reaffirms commitment to Oklahoma State (0:44) You have come to the ESPN Africa edition, for other ESPN editions, click above.Five-star guard prospect Cade Cunningham pledges his commitment to play basketball for Oklahoma State despite program's recent sanctions. The 6-foot-7 point guard from Arlington, Texas, was the key piece of a highly ranked class.Last month, an NCAA infractions committee panel handed down numerous penalties related to former Oklahoma State assistant coach Lamont Evans. "Cunningham is likely a one-and-done player, so he is prepared for the possibility that he might never play a postseason game for the Cowboys. 1 in the final ESPN 100 rankings for 2020. "And we have a very, very strong relationship outside of basketball; there are actually often times that I've talked to Cade in the last three and a half years that basketball wasn't even a topic of discussion. And so it was really about, 'Hey, let's look at everything; let's be honest about what the options are; let's talk about the pros, because there are pros -- not necessarily professional, but there are good things about all the options -- and there may be some negatives in each of them.'