A couple of you caught the removal of David Williams from our recruiting classes table yesterday on Inside the Hall and asked for an explanation. It’s been rumored for quite a while that IU and Williams have parted ways, but it was all speculation until recently.

Yesterday, we learned that Williams would not sign with IU, which prompted our removal of his name from the site. Today, our friend and Herald-Times Sports Editor Chris Korman confirmed the news via The Hoosier Scoop:

I’ve spoken with Dwight Williams, the father of Florida wing David Williams, a couple of times on the phone today. Though Dwight is busy dealing with work, he did say that David will not sign a letter of intent with Indiana during the early signing period, which begins tomorrow.

David should have time to explain his decision soon, Dwight said.

Expect a Letter of Intent tomorrow from Victor Oladipo and continued pursuit of Will Sheehey, Jelan Kendrick and Josh Selby as Indiana looks to add to its 2010 class. We’ve updated the scholarship numbers page accordingly.

The latest comments from Dwight Williams, the father of David Williams, seem to indicate a level uncertainty on when or if he will sign a Letter of Intent with Indiana. Herald-Times Sports Editor Chris Korman posted this update last night on The Hoosier Scoop:

“He’s just thinking about having a good final year on the court and in the classroom,” Dwight Williams said. “He knows he’s going to college somewhere. Where? We know this is a process.”

Williams remains committed to Indiana, his father said.

Here’s what we know: Williams was not at Hoosier Hysteria and does not have an official visit to Bloomington scheduled. Neither Williams or his father has confirmed that he will sign with Indiana in November. Williams is not speaking to the media. And Indiana continues to recruit the 2010 class as evidenced by the recent offer to Will Sheehey and on-going courtship of Jelan Kendrick and Josh Selby.

A who’s-who of college coaches arrived in Cincinnati Monday for the opening of the July evaluation period at the adidas It Takes 5ive Classic.

Among the coaches spotted: Tom Crean and assistants Tim Buckley and Bennie Seltzer; Louisville’s Rick Pitino, Walter McCarty and Steve Masiello; UCLA’s Ben Howland; Kentucky’s John Calipari; North Carolina’s Roy Williams; Ohio State’s Thad Matta; Minnesota’s Tubby Smith; Michigan’s John Beilein; Arizona’s Sean Miller; Memphis’s Josh Pastner; Notre Dame’s Mike Brey; Michigan State’s Tom Izzo; Maryland’s Gary Williams; West Virginia’s Bob Huggins and Georgetown’s John Thompson III.

Inside the Hall spent the day bouncing back and forth between the Fifth Third Center and the Campus Recreation Center and here are our observations:

+ The jury is still out on David Williams: The 6-7 lefty (pictured), IU’s lone commitment from the 2010 class, started the day slow as he failed to score in the Atlanta Celtics opening contest. Williams told us he wasn’t happy with his play in that game and looked much better in the afternoon in a 10-point effort. Offensively, Williams has a long way to go to become a scorer at the Big Ten level. He often looked out of rhythm offensively and needs to become more assertive. In July, the best players tend to stand out and make a name for themselves. Today, we simply didn’t see that from Williams.

+ Strong performances from Indiana Elite’s Matt Carlino, Cody Zeller and Marshall Plumlee: Carlino looked much more comfortable than he was in May and looked like a player that can make an impact at the next level. His court vision and ball handling were both excellent.

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The July evaluation period kicks off Monday for college coaches and their assistants. And with coaches being unable to attend AAU tournaments in the month of April, July’s evaluation period has even more importance in 2009.

In no particular order, here are the storylines we’ll be tracking this month:

+ Is David Williams a high major talent? Before he committed to Indiana in late April, Williams was relatively unknown nationally. He is not among the top 100 prospects in the 2010 class on either Scout.com or Rivals.com and many wonder if offering a scholarship to Williams was a stretch for the IU staff. Playing on a stacked roster for the Atlanta “J-Smoove” Celtics that includes N.C. State commit Ryan Harrow, Tennessee commit Jordan McRae and former Ohio State commit Trae Golden, Williams is often overshadowed and perhaps under appreciated by scouts. We’ll get our first look at the Jacksonville native on Monday.

+ Can Indiana secure an official visit from Kyrie Irving? The Hoosiers appear to be in a favorable position for their top 2010 target after he said Indiana was at the top of his list in early June. However, Irving has established himself as one of the top players nationally in his class and Duke, Virginia, Kentucky and Notre Dame are all believed to be making a strong push. He will participate in the LeBron James Skills Academy this week and IU coaches will be able to watch him on Wednesday and Thursday.

+ Will Matt Carlino return to form after a tough April and May? After being slowed by injuries this spring, Carlino hopes to get his shooting stroke back and display the talents that led to an IU offer last summer. With his recent move to Bloomington, he should be more familiar with his Indiana Elite teammates. Look for IU’s lone 2011 commitment to have an impressive summer while playing both guard spots.

+ Is Indiana a major factor for Marquis Teague? Publicly, the stance from the Indianapolis Pike point guard is that he loves Indiana and Tom Crean. At the same time, Louisville has been recognized as the team to beat since last winter. There’s no doubt IU has been able to make up considerable ground in his recruitment. But can Crean sell Teague that he’ll be able to compete for a national title his freshman season?

+ Who is the best player from Indiana in the 2012 class? The 2012 class is loaded with talent and IU is actively recruiting four of the top players: Bowman Academy’s Dejuan Marrero, Broad Ripple’s Ron Patterson, Lawrence Central’s Jeremy Hollowell and North Central’s D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera. To this point, Smith-Rivera has garnered the most national publicity, but Hollowell’s length, Patterson’s versatility and Marrero’s athleticism are all things to keep an eye on.

On Monday, July 6 we’ll be at the adidas It Takes Five Classic in Cincinnati and on July 10, 11 and 12 we’ll be at the Kentucky Hoopfest in Louisville. Follow us on Twitter to receive updates throughout the day from both events.

Many Indiana fans were surprised at the news early last evening that David Williams, a 6-7 wing from Jacksonville (FL), had given a verbal commitment to the Hoosiers. Despite averaging 21 points, 11 rebounds and six assists as a junior this past season, Williams was a virtual unknown nationally. We caught up with his father, Dwight, to learn more about the first addition to the 2010 class.

On his son’s decision to commit to Indiana:

“He was recently offered, but we had been in communications with Indiana since July. Roshown McLeod coached him last summer and Coach Crean hired McLeod to be an assistant coach and my son really, really liked two things: Indiana and he had a good relationship with Coach McLeod. He did all of his research, so this wasn’t a hasty decision. He knows a lot about the physical therapist program in which he wants to study. We went on the Web Site and researched the school. We know it’s cold up in that area (laughs). Everything that it offered was good. We looked at some games on the TV last season. So this was not they came to see him one time and he made a hasty decision. It was well thought out with David and the entire family.”

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Both Chris Korman of the H-T/Hoosier Scoop and Rick Bozich of The Louisville Courier-Journal are confirming tonight that 6-7 forward David Williams from Jacksonville (FL) gave a verbal commitment to the Hoosiers early this evening.

Here’s the scoop, according to Korman:

“Indiana is just a school that everybody knows, and it is every player’s dream to play at a place like that,” Williams told me moments ago.

Williams plays for AAU basketball for the Atlantic Celtics, an organization that Indiana assistant Roshown McCleod was close with before being hired late last summer.

“I knew coach Ro and knew that he would be part of an exciting team that would want to get up the floor,” Williams said.

If you didn’t see this coming, raise your hand. That’s what I thought. Williams is unranked on the Rivals.com Top 150 and he’s a two-star recruit on Scout. That could be totally irrelevant if he’s a late bloomer and an emerging prospect. Which may or may not be the case. For now, it’s probably best to reserve judgment until we can learn more about Williams.