Troy Baxter Jr. said he was looking for a more comfortable existence.
UNLV’s basketball team apparently offered one.
Baxter, a four-star power forward, committed to the Rebels on Thursday and is immediately eligible as a freshman.
Baxter was ranked 90th in the ESPN Top 100 as a senior last season at Oldsmar Christian (Florida), where he averaged 17.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks.
He also considered UCLA and Arizona State as potential landing spots after decommitting from South Florida and being released from his national letter of intent.
The Tampa Bay Times last week reported that “Baxter’s absence essentially coincides with reports in July indicating the USF men’s basketball program was being investigated by the NCAA for possible academic fraud.