Niko Medved’s first in-state Gophers basketball scholarship offer goes to Wayzata’s Christian Wiggins

New Gophers men’s basketball coach Niko Medved’s initial act to establish himself locally in recruiting was to target someone different than his predecessor.

Medved’s first scholarship offer to a Minnesota high school recruit went out Sunday to Wayzata junior Christian Wiggins, who announced it on social media after talking with the Gophers.

Wiggins, the state’s No. 1 player in the 2026 class by 247Sports and Prep Hoops, did not previously have an offer from the Gophers under former coach Ben Johnson.

“Niko’s showing Gophers fans how intentional he is about going after the best players in the state,” D1 Minnesota 17U coach Al Harris said.

Wiggins, a 6-4, four-star guard also has major conference offers from Clemson, Creighton, Iowa State, Oklahoma, Michigan, Stanford and Wisconsin. He also had offers from the previous coaches at Iowa and Xavier.

Wiggins’ first power conference offer came from Wisconsin after coach Greg Gard watched him in February 2024. The two border rivals don’t always recruit the same players, but eyebrows were raised when Johnson’s Gophers didn’t offer Wiggins after he became the No. 1 junior in the state.

“For whatever reason Ben didn’t offer him,” Harris said. “It did matter to Christian, but it doesn’t matter to him anymore because he and his family can see this is a whole new staff. He’s a good player. He’s gotten better. He deserves to be recruited at that level. He’s excited about it and that’s all that really matters.”

Several top prospects in Minnesota were excited about the Gophers new coach last week. Wiggins’ AAU teammates Dothan Ijadimbola from Totino-Grace and Cedric Tomes from East Ridge had previous offers from the Gophers, but they were also recruited by Medved at Colorado State.

Known for his athleticism and versatility on both ends of the court, Wiggins separated himself from the pack earlier this month, especially after helping to lead Wayzata to its third Class 4A championship in the past five years.

He had 21 points in the state final vs. Cretin-Derham Hall. Wiggins also made sure the Trojans qualified for the state tournament with 31 points, including six three-pointers, in the Section 6 championship vs. a talented Hopkins team.

“One of the things that’s been most impressive outside of his efficiency on the floor in all areas has been his physical build,” Harris said. “You could tell he put a lot of time into his body. He’s also improved his rebounding. That’s something people don’t talk about a lot.”

Medved can’t discuss players who haven’t signed, but he talked about prioritizing in-state recruiting during his introductory news conference with the Gophers last week.

“There’s great talent here,” Medved said. “There’s terrific coaching, there’s terrific resources around it. I just think basketball runs deep in the state of Minnesota.”

Wiggins’ D1 Minnesota 17U team is expected to be the deepest it has been in years. Other Division I prospects besides Wiggins, Ijadimbola and Tomes include Wayzata guard Nolen Anderson, Fairbault big man Ryan Kreager, Storm Lake (IA) wing Jaidyn Coon, Maple Grove sophomore guard Babou Ann and St. Michael-Albertville sophomore center Jack Thelen.