Class of 2019 Francis Okoro entering big-time territory

ST. LOUIS -- Considering he's only been playing basketball for three years, forward Francis Okoro is an impressive prospect. With recent gains he's made with his game, the rising junior is knocking on the door of elite status.

The native of Nigeria, who moved to the United States in the seventh grade, didn't actually pick up basketball until he entered the eighth grade. An imposing athlete with strength and agility, he's taken to the game quite well.

"I'm very intense and I play the game with passion," Okoro told Rivals.com. "I'm always going to compete and I'm showing all of the skills that I can do. But some games are going to be rough and you have to be able to be physical and I think I do that.

"I feel like I can do whatever I want to do when I touch the ball and that I can stop anybody."

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Already listing offers from Illinois, Missouri, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, Purdue, Virginia Tech, Tennessee and many others, Okoro is also seeing Kansas and North Carolina turn up their interest.

"I've been working hard on my jumper and being in the right places," he said. "I want to be a reliable mid-range player and a reliable post player. I want to do all of that so I can be more versatile and play basketball longer."

Still early in the process, Okoro hasn't taken any unofficial visits but he plans to hit several programs after the summer and said he could see himself taking up to 10 unofficial visits with Illinois and North Carolina high on his list.

"There have been a lot of schools trying to get me to come visit," he said. "I want to try and do as many of them as I can after July. I get calls from at least 10 schools like every day. They all talk about how aggressive a player I am, how intense I play and that they can take me to a higher level."