Indiana doesn’t have a long, storied history of successfully recruiting players from South Bend, Ind.
But it has happened.
Damezi Anderson is the most recent example, but you had to go back to the 70s to find a South Bend product who went to IU before him. And the northern Indiana city has certainly produced talent in recent years, with NBA guards Blake Wesley and Jaden Ivey both playing high school basketball in the area in the last five years.
Of course South Bend is the home of Notre Dame, and it is closer to Purdue and the Michigan schools than Bloomington.
It gets even more complicated with Reynolds, who has three sisters who play basketball at Purdue.
But the IU staff is not letting any of that stop them from putting in the work to see where things go.
Indiana offered Reynolds a scholarship in March after he visited Bloomington for a game, and they’ve been in contact since.
“Yeah, Indiana has definitely been contacting me,” Reynolds told The Daily Hoosier. “We’ve got a good relationship. It’s definitely been good.”
Reynolds says he primarily talks to Indiana assistant director of recruiting Adam Howard. Assistant coach Brian Walsh has also watched some of his games over the last month.
The 6-foot-5 shooting guard attends Washington H.S. He plays spring and summer basketball for Phenom United on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit, where we caught up with him in Rock Hill, S.C.
According to MaxPreps, Reynolds averaged 20.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 3.2 blocks and 1.2 steals per game as a sophomore at Washingto. He shot 42 percent overall, and 30 percent from three.
Reynolds says he knows people assume he’ll go to Purdue or Notre Dame, but he says he’s a year away from narrowing things down and wants to get the word out he’s wide open right now.
“Yeah I know that’s what people say, that’s the word on the block,” Reynolds said. “But I’m definitely open. My recruiting is open for sure. No slight to Notre Dame or Purdue, those are good programs. But my recruitment is open. If they want to build a relationship with me, then build a relationship with me. It’s definitely wide open.”
Reynolds says he’s focused on getting stronger and improving his ball handling skills so he’s prepared to better absorb contact in more of a lead facilitator role.
Obviously getting Reynolds on the IU campus for more than a game visit will be job one to advance his recruitment to a more serious stage. He said he doesn’t have any visits lined up for late summer or fall, but he’ll be focusing on getting some set up now that AAU action is winding down.
What does Reynolds know about Indiana so far?
“It’s just a great program,” he told The Daily Hoosier. “I’ve been studying and modeling my game a little bit after Jalen Hood-Schifino, just how he plays — a bigger point coming off screens. I’ve definitely heard a lot of good things about them.”
Like most players in the 2026 class, Reynolds says he’s got time before really getting serious about recruiting. What seems right now like factors that will play a key part in choosing a college down the road?
“Just somewhere where I can fit in, play my game, play my role,” Reynolds said. “Obviously help the team win is the main goal, and then after that is to get to the pros. So whatever can help me do that, I’m open to it.”
Work #SR3 pic.twitter.com/WecTQwwdYo
— Steven Reynolds III #SR3 (@SR3BucketKing) June 25, 2024
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