Despite the hype they receive, signing days aren’t deadlines. They don’t mark the last day recruits can render their John Hancock onto a National Letter of Intent, but rather the first. And, so, Wednesday’s spring signing period for prospective college basketball players will open as scheduled, but don’t expect Langford, a five-star shooting guard, to make his announcement then. 

Rated the Class of 2018’s No. 5 overall player by ESPN and 247 Sports and No. 6 by Rivals, the Indiana native is the nation’s top uncommitted recruit. According to the Indianapolis Star, he will sign with Kansas, Indiana or Vanderbilt at a ceremony inside the New Albany (Ind.) High gym at the end of the month. 

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Let’s examine how he’d fit in with each of his finalists:

Kansas Jayhawks

For more than two months, it appeared as if Duke had won the 2018-19 recruiting arms race when Zion Williamson committed to the Blue Devils. His late-January decision added to a class that already included consensus No. 1 overall player R.J. Barrett, No. 1 shooting guard Cam Reddish and the country’s top pure point guard in Tre Jones.

Then five-star forward E.J. Montgomery committed to Kentucky on Monday. A day later, Ashton Hagans, the best junior point guard in the country, gave a verbal pledge to the Wildcats, adding that he’s attempting to reclassify to the Class of 2018 in hopes of being eligible to enroll at UK and suit up next season. The duo would join a group of freshmen that also consists of All-Americans Immanuel Quickley and Tyler Herro. 

Should Langford side with Kansas, ranked No. 1 in SN’s way-too-early college basketball Top 25, Jayhawks coach Bill Self will have gathered a collection of freshmen comparable to Mike Krzyzewski’s and John Calipari’s. 

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It looked unlikely months ago that Langford would land in Lawrence, given there was just one potential vacancy in the starting lineup (Big 12 Player of the Year Devonte’ Graham, a senior), but a stellar NCAA Tournament prompted redshirt sophomore Malik Newman to declare for the NBA Draft and hire an agent, and then junior wing Lagerald Vick became an unexpected early entrant, too.

It seems Langford will indeed have a chance to compete for playing time if he chooses KU and joins All-Americans guards Devon Dotson and Quentin Grimes, big man David McCormack and lesser-known prospect Ochai Agbaji, as well as a bevy of talented transfers. Langford would have to earn every second on the floor, but with his ideal length and ability to score from nearly anywhere (within reason), he could thrive in a Jayhawks offense that was second to only Purdue among major conference programs last season in 3-point field-goal percentage. 

Indiana Hoosiers

The editors at 247 Sports give the Hoosiers the best chance of gaining the services of Langford, an estimated 45 percent likelihood he’ll sign with them. It would certainly be consistent with his history of loyalty. Langford could have transferred to the ballyhooed prep school of his choice, but he chose instead to play four years at a public school. A signature from a player of Langford’s status could a go a long way in changing the fortunes of one of college basketball’s flagship programs. Indiana has fallen on hard times of late, missing the NCAA Tournament in each of the past two seasons. 

Langford would give the Hoosiers an exciting triumvirate of in-state perimeter players. Three-star point guard Robert Phinisee chose IU over Purdue, Virginia, Ohio State and Georgetown. Four-star small forward Damezi Anderson sided with Indiana and turned down offers from the likes of Michigan and Connecticut.

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An Indiana starting lineup consisting of Langford, Phinisee, Anderson, Juwan Morgan (16.5 points per game, 7.4 rebounds per game last season) and De’Ron Davis (9.6 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 1.5 blocks per game) could develop into one of the better units in the Big Ten. 

Vanderbilt Commodores

Whether or not Langford shows up in Nashville, the Commodores already have their best recruiting class in school history with two five-star recruits: point guard Darius Garland and forward Simisola Shittu, both of whom are ranked in the top 15 nationally by ESPN and 247 Sports. Prior to Garland, who committed a week before Shittu, a McDonald’s All-American had never signed with Vanderbilt. Adding Langford would be beyond the Commodores faithful’s wildest dreams. For what it’s worth, Quickley, a good friend of Langford’s, said Langford would be a Commodore when he was asked at the McDonald’s All-American Game. 

“If I had to guess, I would guess Vandy,” Quickley told SEC Country, “but I know nothing. I would guess Vandy.” 

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With Garland running the show, small forward Aaron Nesmith (rated No. 68 by 247 Sports) on one wing and the 6-9, 220-pound Shittu down low, Langford, would seemingly be able to play his natural position on a star-studded squad that would be a potential disrupter in the SEC. There would be all the opportunity in the world on a team that went 12-20, finished 13th in its league and lost its top three scorers to graduation in 2017-18. With Langford in the fold, the Commodores would be the latest freshman-led team attempting to shake up the world in the one-and-done era.

The pick: Indiana

Kansas is too crowded, and while Vanderbilt seems promising, I see Langford sticking to his roots, much like he did in high school. He’ll try to leave his mark and restore one of the sport’s most storied programs to respectability.