Pastner's success at home continues with Nick King

Memphis head coach Josh Pastner continued his recruiting roll with hometown prospects Monday when Nick King of Memphis East (Tenn.) cast his lot with the Tigers.

The decision came at a morning press conference at Memphis East.

King, a 6-foot-7, 210-pound forward, checked in at No. 44 in the August update of the MaxPreps Class of 2013 Top 100. He joins fellow Memphis high school product Markel Crawford of Melrose in Pastner's 2013 recruiting class.

The current Tiger roster is stocked with highly-touted Memphis products. Tarik Black, Joe Jackson and Adonis Thomas were all high school All-Americans at city programs. The 2012-13 Memphis roster will feature six homegrown talents.

King's stock soared late in the 2011-12 season as he helped Memphis East catch fire and capture Tennessee's Class AAA state title, averaging 24 points and nine rebounds per game in state tournament play.

Along with sophomore star Keelan Lawson, King and the Mustangs will once again be among the headliners in Memphis' loaded high school hoops scene – along with Southwind, White Station, Ridgeway and Melrose – and certainly on the national rankings radar come November.

King chose the Tigers over Tennessee, Texas and Vanderbilt.