UNC Basketball Battling Pitt's Duke Alum for Derek Dixon

The top-tier four-star now has UNC basketball and two more ACC schools in his final four for decision day.

UNC basketball recruiting target Derek Dixon / Katie Goodale / USA TODAY NETWORK

On Friday evening, 247Sports' Adam Finkelstein reported that Gonzaga College High School (D.C.) four-star guard Derek Dixon will announce his decision at 3 p.m. ET next Friday, his 18th birthday. Back in late July, UNC basketball head coach Hubert Davis and his staff landed in the surging senior prospect's top six, along with Vanderbilt, Arizona, Syracuse, Virginia, and Pitt.

"I've developed a good relationship with Coach Davis and Coach [Jeff] Lebo," Dixon, a 6-foot-3, 190-pound crafty backcourt sensation who ranks No. 47 overall on the 247Sports 2025 Composite, recently told 247Sports' Dushawn London, "and they're preaching they need a replacement for RJ Davis and potentially Elliot Cadeau if he goes pro."

According to Finkelstein, the Tar Heels are now in Dixon's final four, along with Virginia, Vanderbilt, and Pitt, heading into the final week of his recruitment.

Speaking of Pitt, it sounds like Panthers head coach Jeff Capel, a former Duke basketball guard and longtime assistant for UNC's archrival, now stands as the top threat to Davis in the Derek Dixon sweepstakes.

There are no 247Sports Crystal Ball picks for Dixon just yet. The same goes for the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine.

But as of last week, the Rivals FutureCast contains one expert forecast, and it points to Capel and his crew coming out on top.

"I've had a great relationship with them," Dixon noted to London about the Pitt staff, "and they were my first visit and high-major offer...They've been recruiting me for a while and have been preaching that they can see me fitting in and playing a big role like their two freshmen did this past season..."

Dixon, a standout for Team Takeover in Nike EYBL action throughout the spring and summer, was in Chapel Hill for his UNC basketball official visit two weeks ago. The Tar Heels, looking for their first 2025 prize, ended up being the last suitor to host him.

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