Niels GiffeyWith Darius Smith deciding to transfer, Jim Calhoun and the UConn Huskies men’s basketball program had another scholarship to offer for next season. They had a kid from Germany named Niels Giffey in for an official visit the past two days and now it looks like he’ll be coming to Storrs for next season.

It seems as though the whole NCAA violations didn’t hurt UConn as according to David Borges of the New Haven Register and Mike Anthony of the Hartford Courant, Giffey, a 6’6″ forward, has given Calhoun an oral commitment for next season.

Here’s what Giffey had to say about his choice in UConn courtesy of Borges:

“I’m really excited to come to UConn,” said Giffey, who speaks fluent English. “I knew that UConn has a great basketball history. Coach Calhoun is a Hall of Fame coach, they’ve had Ray Allen and plenty of great wings. I like that fact. It’s a good team, a great coaching staff. I really felt comfortable.”

Giffey joins Roscoe Smith, Shabazz Napier, Tyler Oleander, Jeremy Lamb and Michael Bradley in the UConn’s 2010 recruiting class.