Nikolas Khamenia Makes It Four UNC Offers Within last 24 Hours
After a busy Monday that saw three rising juniors pick up offers from North Carolina. Nikolas Khamenia announced during the night that he was the fourth, and lucky number 13 overall to get an invite from the Tar Heels in the Class of 2025.
The 6-foot-8 wing out of the Los Angeles area is also the first player from the new Puma sponsored Pro16/NXT AAU circuit to be offered by UNC. The organization held its live period event over the weekend in Wichita, Kansas.
Khamenia and the BTI Basketball Club were there, and the 6-foot-8 wing made quite the statement. He had individual scoring performances of 36, 15, 22, and 21 to give him four game averages of 23.5 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. Three of his four games ended in double-doubles as he owned the boards as well as put the ball in the basket.
Besides North Carolina, Tennessee also offered one day after the live period concluded. They join a group of high quality that consists as Cal, Gonzaga, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, St. John's, Stanford, UCLA, UNLV, and Virginia.
Khamenia's only visit so far has been to Gonzaga, but he told Jason Jordan back in February that he plans on getting busy in that part of his recruitment. He has also stated previously that he would like to make a final decision by the early fall.
“I haven’t put things down on paper, but I’m hoping to get out to some schools in the spring,” Khamenia said. “The whole process has been fun, just getting to know the coaches and talking with them.”
Jordan writes, "At 6-foot-8, Khamenia’s versatility on both ends of the floor is what’s made him a hot prospect among college basketball coaches. Still, as gifted as he is as a three-level scorer, Khamenia said he gets more excited about threading the needle on a sharp pass than he does on draining an NBA 3-pointer."
"Think about it, there are a lot of guys that can shoot it, but passing is different,” Khamenia told Jordan. “Not everyone can make a special pass, that’s about IQ and timing and energy. I feel like I just think differently than most guys.”
Zach Smart of NYC Hoops on the Rivals network assesses, "A 6-foot-8 Class of 2025 forward with a dependable outside shot and a knack for maneuvering his way into the lane in crafty fashion. Khamenia is a highly skilled and multi-positional wing. Khamenia's deft touch from mid-range and has the ability to elude defenders with an array of fakes an evolving off-dribble repertoire. . Khamenia is an equally intriguing threat with his post-up game and knack for eliciting mismatches. He's able to drag defenders to the rim and utilize his delicate touch in the key or 4-5 feet from the rim, authoring consistent interior efficiency."
Khamenia also comes out of one of the most prestigious high school programs in the state of California. He averaged 22 points per game last winter that spurred Harvard-Westlake onto its sixth straight Mission League Championship. They also won a State Championship in 2023 with Khamenia playing a pivotal role in the starting lineup.
The NXTPRO national tournament opening rounds will be held in Phoenix June 10-14 during the NCAA live period. The finals will be in Indianapolis July 19-21 which is during the live period as well.