London Dada just might be the next big thing when it comes to Nebraska high school basketball recruiting.
After a very successful run of multiple high-major to low-major Division I players, the state has seen a dip. Currently, Dada’s teammate Will Preston is the one player in the 2026 class who is signed (Hampton) or has received an offer to play Division I basketball.
Dada, a 6-foot-8 junior, is currently the only in-state player with a Division I offer in the 2027 class. Omaha, Belmont, Creighton and Nebraska have all extended scholarship offers.
Omaha was the first to offer the sharp-shooting wing. The Mavericks have a connection to Dada and his family. His father, Tola, played basketball at Omaha (2000-04).
He’s relying on the experience and toughness his dad brought to the game as a player.
“No one puts more pressure on me than my dad; he wants me to succeed and has my best interest at heart,” London said. “The people that don’t know me or the people out in public don’t need to know all of the small details of my recruitment. I keep my circle tight.”
He’s unofficially visited all four programs at different times and for different reasons. He’s taken game-day visits to Omaha and Creighton. He also traveled to Nashville for an unofficial visit at Belmont.
Dada spent multiple Saturdays in Lincoln in the fall as a guest of Nebraska men’s basketball for Husker football games and has taken a game-day visit to Iowa.
What is planned next on his recruitment journey is an official visit to Creighton on Jan. 31, 2026.
“I’m from Omaha and I just want to see the campus and the academic side,” he said of what he’s looking forward to on his first-ever official visit. “I’m looking forward to meeting more of the people that are a part of their process at Creighton.”
His relationship with Creighton assistant coach Trey Zeigler has grown and is strong. Zeigler is the point man for in-state recruiting at Creighton.
“I feel like they care a lot about me,” he said. “Mainly it’s Coach Zeigler that checks on me and how my practice went or how my games went or just how school is going.”
His most recent offer came from Nebraska. Last week (Dec. 11), Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg and recruiting coordinator Padyn Borders were in attendance when he scored 31 points, including 21 in the second half, in an 82-71 Westside win at Lincoln East.
The next morning, Hoiberg called and told him they wanted him to be a part of their 2027 recruiting class.
“(Borders) talks to my family a lot,” Dada said of the budding relationship with Nebraska.
Nebraska sees Dada as a player who can fit into their system and they would have a plan to develop him.
“Hoiberg talked a little bit about it and how I could be like Brice Williams or how (Braden Frager) has developed,” he said. “Their offense is free-flowing and all five players can score and how I would fit into their offense.”
There isn’t a plan for Dada to get back to Lincoln to see a game in person or just visit with the coaches in the Hendricks facility just yet.
“We haven’t looked too much into the future,” Dada said. “Now that they (Nebraska) offered, it feels better and I know that I have a solid relationship with Coach Borders and if I wanted to go to a game that lined up with my schedule, he would take care of me.”
Winning is important to Dada and finding the right fit in a school that will develop his skill set so he can continue to get better is going to be important in his decision, he said.
Dada is young for his grade, having just turned 16 in July 2025.
Although he’s made great strides from a long, lanky freshman to an impactful junior, it’s been a true development process so far in his high school career.
A knock-down 3-point shooter, he’s worked on his game to develop some post moves, driving to the basket and finishing at the rim.
“I’ve worked on my body, got faster, stronger, and worked on my confidence a lot,” he said. “I’ve really expanded my offensive game. I need to keep getting stronger, faster and right now just working on getting more downhill and finishing through contact.”
Dada played in two varsity games as a freshman, then averaged 8.2 points and shot 42% from 3 as a sophomore. Through four games as a junior, he’s put up 14.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 55% inside the arc and 42% from deep.
Westside coach Jim Simons has seen the growth in his young pupil.
“London has improved dramatically each of the last 3 years,” Simons said. “Every November he’s entered the season a significantly better player than he was the year before. He has always worked hard on his skill level but has also taken a huge step with his work in the weight room as well. He works hard in all of our team stuff, but like most great players, he understands that it also requires a significant amount of time on his own. He’s one that has been willing to put in a ton of work to improve and has benefited from his work.”
With senior Emre Gedik and Dada leading the way, the Warriors are off to a 3-1 start and ranked third in the NEBPreps Coaches Poll.
