Our class ranked 39th in recruiting - not bad at all
Top 5 classes:
Kansas, UCLA, LSU, Duke, UNLV.
I don't adjust the schedule that our AD gives us at all, despite several tough games being on there, including at Memphis.
A look at the roster now that we actually have the kids on campus:
PG's:
Everett Huffman - Nice improvement in the offseason. Now rated 70 overall. Gained an inch in height - now 5'10 186. Still has excellent speed and solid defense.
J.B. Bridgewater - Rated 49 overall. Will never play.
SG's:
Nate Graves is everything we thought we saw on video. With the significantly diminished talent on this team (our overall team talent rating dropped from 81 at the end of last year to 75 now), he is the undisputed best player on this team. He is rated 75 overall. The bad news is that our staff doesn't think his potential is as great as initially forecast. However, he is already very fast for a SG with his size. He is now 6'4 185. He has very sticky hands and is a good ball defender. He is a good passer. He isn't a great shooter, but is a solid shooter who uses his athleticism to drive to the lane more than spot up and shoot.
Donte Snow is now rated 73 overall. He is 6'5 225 now. He is the best 3 point shooter on our team. Does everything else fairly well. Because of his weaker defense, he might be our bench offense again with Graves starting. Correction, there is no doubt Graves is starting.. the only question is whether Snow starts at SF or Collins starts at SF....
Ike Hendriks is 6'2 215 and is now a senior. He'll play backup PG. Decent backup. Rated 66 overall. Best attribute is speed and 3 point shooting.
Douglas Peciukas is rated 58 overall. Now a senior. Has good speed, but not much else. Won't see the floor much.
Laurie Beachem is a 6'5 205 pound SO walk-on who is rated 54 overall. Ok 3 point shooter. Won't see the floor much due to so many other deficiencies.
SF's:
Friedrich Collins is better than expected. He is 6'5 230 now. Great speed for his size with a very quick first step. Good dribling ability. Good defender. Great midrange shooter as expected. Only negative is that our staff doesn't expect him to get much better than this over the years. He is just decent from outside the arc.
Reyshawn Ortiz is only rated 67 overall, but our staff thinks he has better potential then Friedrich. He is already a better 3 point shooter which will assure him some playing time. He isn't as athletic or as good in any other area. He is a bit light as well at 6'5 186.
W.B. Meeking is rated 67 overall and might continue to see some duty as a backup SF who can occasionally hit the 3 when he is feeling it.
PF's:
Sergio Owensworth is now a senior and might get to start as a result. I'm undecided on this one. He is 6'8 235. He is ok at most aspects of the game but doesn't thrive in any area.
Jerome Adams is listed as a center but he is either starting at PF or playing off the bench there. He is 6'9 230. I think since this is a rebuilding year and I'm going to start at least 2, possibly 4 freshman, I might as well start him and let him build some chemistry... He is good post defender. He is a solid shot blocker. Not as good of a rebounder as I'd like. Decent midrange shooter for a big man. He is a bit slow.
Centers:
The best surprise of this class: Deshaun Simon can play well! He is rated 70 overall already which is better than Pait ever was
With his size he should be a tough matchup for most of the centers in the Metro Atlantic. He is now 7'1 277. He is limited offensively but can certainly dunk it. He is a very good rebounder and should be in double digits most games. He is particularly good on the offensive boards. He is a good shot blocker. He has good mobility (better than Jerome Adams) and he is a very high energy hustle type guy. I love him.
Jerel Bogans is now a junior. He is rated 66 overall. He is 6'8 224. He'll play as our backup center. He is a good rebounder for his size.