Indiana basketball recruiting: 2023 4-star guard decommits from Purdue

Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, a 6-foot-1 four-star guard from Montverde Academy, decommits from Purdue, as Indiana basketball was one of two other schools to offer the No. 53 overall prospect in the 2023 recruiting class. Though he received many offers as a sophomore at McCutcheon High School, Gibbs-Lawhorn is reopening up his recruiting and, hopefully, considering the Hoosiers as one of his top schools.

The elite shot-making combo guard has had quite an interesting journey in his three high school seasons as he’s played high school hoops in Indiana, Utah, and now Florida. Gibbs-Lawhorn started his high school career at McCutcheon High School in West Lafayette, IN, then moved onto the Real Salt Lake Academy in Herriman, UT, for his sophomore season as he was looking to compete against better high school competition. After realizing he was playing against kids who shouldn’t be on the same court as him, the junior transferred to Monteverde Academy to join forces with many of the top high school recruits in the nation.

Check out Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn’s journey HERE.

Gibbs-Lawhorn has many ties to the Hoosiers’ program as he played his junior season alongside Indiana freshmen, Jalen Hood-Schifino and Malik Reneau. Though he didn’t get much playing time his junior season, Gibbs-Lawhorn came off the bench and gave a spark to Monteverde Academy against IMG Academy at the GEICO Nationals semifinals.

To add fuel to the Hoosier recruiting fire, the combo guard is playing for the Indy Heat, which Trayce Jackson-Davis played for during his summer AAU time prior to coming to Bloomington in 2019. Playing in the EYBL shows that Gibbs-Lawhorn has the talent to hang with some of the best players in the nation.

Evident from his highlights, the 2023 guard can shoot the ball and has major athleticism for a 6-foot-1 guard. While that is a positive, Gibbs-Lawhorn does have some reminiscences of Khristian Lander, who was a 5-star prospect who reclassified to the 2020 class and got little-to-no playing time with the Hoosiers before transferring this offseason to Western Kentucky. Strength will need to be addressed as an undersized guard in the Big Ten, but the Hoosiers would be gaining another quality guard and shooter in the 2023 recruiting class if Hood-Schifino and Reneau can do some recruiting themselves for their former teammate.