The Iowa Hawkeyes’ basketball program was able to land an intriguing commitment on Monday.
Navon Shabazz, a 6-foot-3 in-state guard in the 2026 recruiting class, made the decision to commit to the program. He provides a very bright outlook for Iowa and could become a key contributor early on.
A fun fact about Shabazz is that he’s actually the cousin of popular rapper Juice WRLD.
Navon Shabazz, cousin of rapper Juice WRLD, just committed to Iowa! 🚨🤩
The 6’4” junior is a BUCKET 🪣🔥@navonxo @slam_university @NikeEYB (📸: @IowaHoops) pic.twitter.com/FcuUxtgT4U
— SLAM HS Hoops (@SLAM_HS) September 17, 2024
Once again, Hawkeyes’ head coach Fran McCaffery has been able to add another talented piece.
Last season in high school, Shabazz ended up averaging 14.7 points per game and he connected on 34 percent of his three-point attempts. He also averaged 4.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.
Another intriguing part of Shabazz’s game is that he has elite potential on the defensive end of the court. He has great athleticism and lateral speed and he’s very aggressive on the ball.
Outside of Iowa, Shabazz was receiving major interest from both Iowa State and Wake Forest. Being able to keep him away from the rival Cyclones is a good feeling for the Hawkeyes as well.
Iowa has been a very competitive basketball program. Continuing to recruit well and keeping in-state talent has been key to them remaining competitive.
Hopefully, Shabazz will be able to become an impact player right off the bat.
All of that being said, this is a major win for the Hawkeyes. He was a very big target for the program and they were able to get the job done.
Now, it’s up to Shabazz to live up to the hype and develop to being a key leader for the Iowa basketball team.
