Gary Parrish

Kyrie Irving told Scout.com's Dave Telep on Monday that his college decision will, at least in part, be determined by his "role in the offense." Best I can tell, that's code for "I'm not interested in playing behind anybody."

And I respect that.

Too often, prospects act like they don't mind learning from upperclassmen or waiting their turn. But the truth is that somebody as talented as Irving ought to look for a place where he'll be the top option at point guard from his first day on campus, and that seems to be what he's doing.

Ranked fifth overall in the Class of 2010 by Scout.com, Irving has scheduled three of his five official visits for Duke (Sept. 25), Indiana (Oct. 2) and Texas A&M (Oct. 9). Among the other schools vying for his services are Kentucky and Connecticut. But those two programs could be affected by the presence of point guards Eric Bledsoe (at UK) and Kemba Walker (at UConn).

(Note: I do not expect John Wall to still be at UK by the time Irving would enroll.)

Irving has set no timetable for a decision.

Duke and Indiana are widely considered to be the leaders in his recruitment.