Darius Bivins leads 3SSB in assists through two sessions, updates recruitment
By SAM LANCE
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA — Class of 2026 four-star point guard Darius Bivins simply throws dimes.
Bivins, the 6-foot, 160-pound guard out of Bishop O’Connell (VA) and the Washington Warriors Adidas AAU program, is 3SSB’s assists and steals leader through two sessions. At Session 2 in Iowa, Bivins showed off his skills in front of head coaches, averaging 14.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.5 steals.
In eight total games this summer, Bivins has an assist/turnover ratio of 60:9 and three games with 10+ dimes. He’s a big reason why Washington sits at 7-1, tied for third place in the circuit standings.
“I’m true point guard,” Bivins told ZAGSBLOG. “I try to find my teammates and score when I need to. I feel like I can affect the game even if I have zero points, just finding my teammates. So I would say I’m a pass-first point guard. I try to model my game after like a Chris Paul or someone like that.”
2026 Darius Bivins is a big time guard! He led his team to a big win at Adidas @Dariusbivins26 @3ssbcircuit @WashWarriorsAAU pic.twitter.com/yWzQIz9f4E
— Courtside Films (@CourtsideFilms) May 20, 2025
Bivins takes a lot of pride in being a true point guard. He said his ability to read the pick-and-roll is one of his best traits right now, and he’s working on his jump shot and just getting stronger and more athletic in the weight room.
“People want to actually play with me as to where some point guards are shooting like 26 shots a game,” Bivins said. “Whereas me, I’m looking to get you the ball. So I feel like it means a lot because I’ve had people be like, ‘Yeah, I really want to play with you.'”
The four-star guard was introduced to basketball by his father, Chris Bivins, who played college basketball at the Division II level. Bivins remembers watching his dad play in open gyms when he was very young, and ever since then, he’s developed his own passion for the game.
“He just taught me when things aren’t going your way, it’s just a sign to keep fighting,” Bivins said. “Keep doing your thing. On the basketball court, sometimes I’ll be having a bad tournament or something like that. But, I mean, just stay working, get back to the drawing board and eventually it’s all going to be good.”
On the recruitment front, Bivins had BYU, Notre Dame, Rutgers and South Carolina, among others, out to see him during the high school season. He also said those schools, plus Maryland, Purdue, Seton Hall, Texas Tech and VCU watched him play in Iowa. Specifically, BYU’s Kevin Young, Maryland’s Buzz Williams, Notre Dame’s Micah Shrewsberry, Purdue’s Matt Painter, Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland and VCU’s Phil Martelli Jr. were the head coaches who caught games courtside.
Bivins has taken an official visit to Harvard and unofficals to Georgetown, Rutgers and Virginia while Tony Bennett was still head coach. He doesn’t have any other visits scheduled at the moment, but has a couple schools in mind for June or fall visits.
“VCU said they wanted to get me on a unofficial down there,” Bivins said. “I’ll probably take another one to Rutgers. I know Harvard was looking at some dates again.”
The point guard broke down some of the schools in contact to ZAGSBLOG:
BYU: “From everything I hear, it’s just a really pro-like program. Everything is trying develop pros and stuff like that. [Young] coached in the NBA. They just got A.J. Dybantsa, the No. 1 recruit. So that shows a lot about what they have to offer and their program.”
Georgetown: “Georgetown was good. That was actually last summer I believe. It was a good environment. I got to watch their practice as well. Coach Kenny [Johnson], before he went to Indiana, that’s who I went on the visit with. So that was a great environment as well. I like Georgetown.”
Harvard: “It wasn’t even necessarily just the basketball stuff, but like the off the court stuff. Everyone says if you graduate from Harvard, you can do whatever you want. I actually got to sit in a class and see the teachers teach and stuff like that. So it was cool seeing that stuff. And they really care about development there, developing you. Strength and conditioning, all of that stuff. So it was great for sure.” Bivins is a great student and said he has a 4.4 GPA.
Rutgers: “It just felt like home from the minute I stepped on campus. I watched their practice. It just felt like a great place, a great environment. I got to watch their inter-squad scrimmage. There was a lot of people there. It was a good environment I feel like. I feel like the Big Ten just in general is a really good conference. If not the best, one of the best for sure. And then me and coach T.J. Thompson have built a great relationship, coach [Steve] Pikiell as well. I feel like the moment me and coach T.J. started talking on June 15, there’s been like — we’ve built a bond that’s kind of unbreakable. He texts me pretty much everyday, checks in on me and makes sure I’m good. That’s definitely family for sure.”
Seton Hall: “They called me earlier this week. We’ve talked a couple times. [Shaheen Holloway] told me about the whole Seton Hall program. We’ve built a pretty good relationship and I like what they got going on there at Seton Hall too.”
South Carolina: “I don’t know much. They started reaching out around mid high school season. So after that, we’ve kind of built a semi-close relationship. I’m hoping to learn more soon.”
Texas Tech: “One of the coaches, I think it was the general manager, he was telling me he’s going to call me tomorrow. He said the head coach was at our Wildcat Select game, and he liked my game. So I’m looking forward to that call.”
Right now, Bivins is taking his recruitment day-by-day, but he has some timelines in mind.
“I assume I’ll narrow it down probably by like late July,” Bivins said. “I definitely want to make a decision before senior year just so I can have fun my senior year and not have to worry about recruitment and all that stuff.”
Bivins is ranked the No. 57 overall prospect in the 2026 class by ESPN. He’s looking for a program that’s all about development.
“I feel like I need to develop and get my game better, perfect my craft,” Bivins said. “And then just somewhere that feels like family. A coach that cares about me, whether that’s him yelling at me, pushing me. My goal is to be a professional basketball player, so I want to go somewhere where the coaching staff is going to push me to be that.”
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