Wow, reading through various threads on this board and people have extremely high expectations for Howard’s first recruiting class. In my opinion, too high of expectations. Back end of the Top20 seems about as optimistic as should be projected at this time. And quite honestly, that should be fine with the youth already in the program now.
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Just by sheer weight of numbers, I think it would be very difficult to accrue a six-person class (if we fail to fill some this year) with somewhat well-regarded players and not have it be top 15. Those class rankings do give you credit for number of bodies - a class of three guys in the 80’s nationally will be ranked higher than a one-man class of a top ten player.
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Class rankings are pretty irrelevant in basketball. Obviously your Dukes and Kentuckys are going to have top 20 classes year in and year out because they cycle through players very quickly. But most schools vary how many commits they’re getting year by year. Our 2015 class was Moe. Only one player, but that’s a great class for one spot. If Wilson had stayed committed, a two man class of Wilson and Bajema is very very good. Two top 75 players. But it’s not going to be rated highly because of two players. It was ranked in the 30s.
We could end up with Zeb and five 3* and that could end up top 30, theoretically.
But realistically, we could get Zeb, Abdur-Rahim and Scooby and that’s 2 top 50sh players and 1 top 100. That’s roughly what Virginia and Miami had in their 2019 classes and they were barely top 30.
I think two top 50sh players, another top 100 player and two lower rated, high potential guys is not a bad class at all. It just depends on who is in there. That said, we have the spots and the profile (good school, lots of playing time available, coach that has been in NBA for the last 25 years of his life, connections to top AAU program etc) to have a very very good class. We’ll just have to wait and see.
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Howard needs a big and talented ‘20 class.
If he snags a top 25 kid, 2-3 top 30-70 kids and a top 120 kid that’s a top 10 class.
In no way should that be a pipe dream type of class.
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the challenge is doing a decent amount of work on trail (getting some commits) before we’ve played a minute of basketball.
if recruits are in a wait n see mode (which im sure other coaches on trail will use) then it could shrink the pool of kids we have a shot with
I have high hopes really. I think Juwan should full on sell a Fab 5 type goal for 2020. The thought of being part of another “Fab 5” type class at Michigan would be a powerful pitch.
I’d include Duncan in the 2015 class.
The size of the 2020 class depends in large part on whether we add Wilson and Wagner to this one.
By my count, here is how things look right now:
PG: DDJ, Zeb
SG: Brooks, Bajema
Wing: Nunez, Livers, Johns
C: Castleton
So we have eight guys. Add Wilson and Wagner, that’s 10, with three to give. Both Wilson and Wagner are probably wings.
I would think our top priority would be adding two guards and another center, especially since Bajema may outgrow that position.
Possibilities at the two: Christopher (I can dream), Burnett, Abdur-Rahim, Adam Miller.
Center: Kessler, Loveday, Isaiah Jackson.
If we do not land Wilson and Wagner, then I would assume we search hard for some wings too.
If we are able to add Wilson and Wagner this year, the roster to me looks very promising for the future: Johns, Castleton, Livers, Jackson, Bajema, Wilson, Wagner - that’s a very talented core group.
Right now, you have six scholarships to give in the 2020 class (Zeb currently using one) and that doesn’t even account for any attrition.
I would be shocked if the 2020 class isn’t at least 5 people, even if you add 1 or 2 players to the roster for next season.
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Assuming no transfers of either kind, that sounds like it to me too. The talk of scoring multiple McDonalds All-Americans in some sorta Fab Five Rebooted arrangement strikes me as unrealistic and also undesirable. But I also think you evaluate the class based on who exactly that top-25 kid is. I’d feel better if that kid complements the upperclassmen already on the team.
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Can someone post a list of all the 2020 offers that have been issued and reaffirmed?
We should probably edit the player thread titles to indicate whether they are Beilein or Howard recruits.
Ah yes, the proverbial we!
Honestly, if the offer list keeps growing, we might need a spreadsheet. What do Kansas fan site’s do?!
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Let’s leave the threads as they are, no need to complicate the titles for a situation that will exist for about a week or two.
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It looks like the recruitment page on UMHOOPS is going to grow into the 25-50 players offered range. I love how JB recruited, he was focused on fit, culture and had a plan for how kids fit his program and style. With that said, it does not mean that JH does not have a plan or fit. Let’s give him the chance to find his way through this tangled NCAA process.
IMO, it’s not who or how you recruit but rather what you do with the talent on your team. Goal number one, uphold the brand and number two, WIN!
Dylan, congratulations on all the new traffic, I hardly recognize the board over the last two weeks! And to all the new participants, if you want to be taken seriously on this forum, you join! If not your just a troll and a mouth which can’t be taken seriously! Talk the talk and back it up when the ball bounces in November! Then you can listen and learn about the game!
Go Blue!
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Personally I don’t care who Howard offers or how many as long as it doesn’t come to the point where a Michigan offer means nothing. Dylan has made several great points about it over multiple threads. If it is like that at first it’s fine because he’s playing catch up. But hopefully that’s not the recipe going forward long term. End of the day though if quantity works then I’ll roll with it.
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At this point he’s only offered/reoffered 4 people right? Considering the size of the class I’d be comfortable with 10+ offers if some of them are gonna be big long shots like Cristopher.
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GO BLUE!!!
(Body is clear. This is a complete sentence.)
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The point I try to make with offers is that they just might not mean as much as far as mutual interest if they are sent out with more volume.
In that case, official visits might be the more important factor. That is a step where prospect and team are limited to a certain number.
Most of the hoops that you had to jump through for a Beilein offer will probably still be present. They will just come after the offer.
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For sure. With Beilein, if there was an offer it meant we at least had a shot at the guy. Will probably not be the case anymore, but hopefully more offers leads to more campus visits.
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I mean I don’t really see the downside. Harbaugh came in and massively increased the amount of offers going out from the football team. Cast a wide net and see who bites.