2017 Recruiting Class Could Be The Best Yet

[stever20]

I've given this class credit. It's a good class. I just personally feel like having 17 top 107 guys like the 2014 class did is a GREAT class.

Your thing, and a lot of folks here, is that you value depth way more than excellence at the top. Not just in recruiting, but in league play as well. Quality at the top IMO trumps depth.

To me, this class is important because recruiting after the 2014 class had slipped. To go from 15 top 100 recruits in '14 to 14 combined in '15 and '16. To have 9 already, and like you said 2 more that are favored just in the top 50- that's HUGE. To me, this class is already significantly ahead of the '16 class. If we get the 2 guys- it's a HUGE uptick.

[adoraz]

Forgot to mention something important... these class rankings include JUCOs for all classes but the 2017 class. The JUCO list always grows as the season progresses, currently the 2017 JUCO list has no 4/5 star entries.

Again those rankings... which do include JUCOs:
2017: 0 five star and 13 four stars (no potential JUCOS included in these rankings... yet)
2016: 1 five star and 12 four stars
2015: 2 five stars and 9 four stars
2014: 1 five star and 16 four stars
2013: 0 five star and 10 four stars

Both the Big East 2015 and 2016 classes had 1 four star JUCO player, and both went to St. John's. JUCO players are from a different list than the high school recruits but still included in the 247 class rankings. Here's an example of the JUCO list:
http://247sports.com/Season/2016-Basket ... iorCollege

2017 JUCO class: 0 four stars (this will change as the season progresses)
2016 JUCO class: 8 four stars (1 Big East- SJU)
2015 JUCO class: 11 four stars (1 Big East- SJU)
2014 JUCO class: 5 four stars
2013 JUCO class: 1 five star 3 four stars

In other words, the 2017 class could add another potential 4-11 spots, and one of those players could go to the Big East. So yet another reason why doing a full analysis of an incomplete class is misguided.

[stever20]

Forgot to mention something important... these class rankings include JUCOs for all classes but the 2017 class. The JUCO list always grows as the season progresses, currently the 2017 JUCO list has no 4/5 star entries.

Again those rankings... which do include JUCOs:
2017: 0 five star and 13 four stars (no potential JUCOS included in these rankings... yet)
2016: 1 five star and 12 four stars
2015: 2 five stars and 9 four stars
2014: 1 five star and 16 four stars
2013: 0 five star and 10 four stars

Both the Big East 2015 and 2016 classes had 1 four star JUCO player, and both went to St. John's. JUCO players are from a different list than the high school recruits but still included in the 247 class rankings. Here's an example of the JUCO list:
http://247sports.com/Season/2016-Basket ... iorCollege

2017 JUCO class: 0 four stars (this will change as the season progresses)
2016 JUCO class: 8 four stars (1 Big East- SJU)
2015 JUCO class: 11 four stars (1 Big East- SJU)
2014 JUCO class: 5 four stars
2013 JUCO class: 1 five star 3 four stars

In other words, the 2017 class could add another potential 4-11 spots, and one of those players could go to the Big East. So yet another reason why doing a full analysis of an incomplete class is misguided.

what are you talking about? 2014 had 1 5 star and 16 4 star HIGH SCHOOL players. 2016 had 1 5 and 12 4 star HIGH SCHOOL players.

The far bigger thing quite frankly is the transfer market. That's where the Big East has really done well and is improving considerably.

[JohnW22]

The problem with comparing the 2014 class to the 2017 class is that in the 2014 class many teams needed big numbered classes. Xavier, Providence, Georgetown, and Seton Hall all had classes with more than 4 recruits. The 2017 class doesn't need the numbers that 2014 had to do the job the 2017 class needs to do for the Big East.

[stever20]

The problem with comparing the 2014 class to the 2017 class is that in the 2014 class many teams needed big numbered classes. Xavier, Providence, Georgetown, and Seton Hall all had classes with more than 4 recruits. The 2017 class doesn't need the numbers that 2014 had to do the job the 2017 class needs to do for the Big East.

Big numbered classes doesn't mean anything in terms of the quality of players you're getting. You might get 34 guys, but 20 of them might be weak(but the quantity looks good in the team ranks). The '14 class had 34 guys total, and 21 of them were in the top 150.

And the 2017 class as a league is going to be probably when all is said and done pretty close to the same size. '14 had 34 guys. Well, '17 has 20 guys so far. And a lot of the lower level guys get picked up later in the process. Looking at '14- 9 of the weaker recruits the league got were at or after Christmas.

Also- I do stand corrected. I didn't realize the team rankings included JUCO ranks.

[ChelseaFriar]

The problem with comparing the 2014 class to the 2017 class is that in the 2014 class many teams needed big numbered classes. Xavier, Providence, Georgetown, and Seton Hall all had classes with more than 4 recruits. The 2017 class doesn't need the numbers that 2014 had to do the job the 2017 class needs to do for the Big East.

Good point. PC is out of scholarships as of now. Obviously things change and people transfer but when you have a lot of PT available it helps, especially with players in the 50-150 rankings (guys in the Top 50 assume they will get time anywhere).

[stever20]

It's fun to look at this thread and the ups and downs for schools...
Xavier #7 10/3 #37 7/23 #7 8/25

Butler #8 10/3 #50 7/23 #14 8/29

Villanova #24 10/3 #23 7/23 #12 8/29

Creighton #29 10/3 #7 7/23 #9 8/29

Marquette #31 10/3 #43 7/23 #60 8/29

Providence #32 10/3 #26 7/23 #47 8/29

Seton Hall #57 10/3 #21 7/23 #35 8/29

St John's #60 10/3 #22 7/23 #29 8/29

DePaul #80 10/3 #38 7/23 #53 8/29

looking at the ranks right now.. The numbers are where the final average ratings from last 5 years have been. So right now, Xavier and Butler would be inside the top 30, and Nova and Creighton in the top 50. So for instance with PC- if they have no one else, they likely won't get into the top 50 at the end.
10 64.80
20 59.96
----------X 56.09
----------B 55.32
30 54.92
40 49.07
----------V 48.22
----------C 45.74
50 44.91
----------M 43.59
----------P 42.61
----------SH 26.83
----------SJ 25.54
----------D 18.90

[adoraz]

Forgot to mention something important... these class rankings include JUCOs for all classes but the 2017 class. The JUCO list always grows as the season progresses, currently the 2017 JUCO list has no 4/5 star entries.

Again those rankings... which do include JUCOs:
2017: 0 five star and 13 four stars (no potential JUCOS included in these rankings... yet)
2016: 1 five star and 12 four stars
2015: 2 five stars and 9 four stars
2014: 1 five star and 16 four stars
2013: 0 five star and 10 four stars

Both the Big East 2015 and 2016 classes had 1 four star JUCO player, and both went to St. John's. JUCO players are from a different list than the high school recruits but still included in the 247 class rankings. Here's an example of the JUCO list:
http://247sports.com/Season/2016-Basket ... iorCollege

2017 JUCO class: 0 four stars (this will change as the season progresses)
2016 JUCO class: 8 four stars (1 Big East- SJU)
2015 JUCO class: 11 four stars (1 Big East- SJU)
2014 JUCO class: 5 four stars
2013 JUCO class: 1 five star 3 four stars

In other words, the 2017 class could add another potential 4-11 spots, and one of those players could go to the Big East. So yet another reason why doing a full analysis of an incomplete class is misguided.

what are you talking about? 2014 had 1 5 star and 16 4 star HIGH SCHOOL players. 2016 had 1 5 and 12 4 star HIGH SCHOOL players.

The far bigger thing quite frankly is the transfer market. That's where the Big East has really done well and is improving considerably.

Wrong.

http://247sports.com/Season/2016-Basket ... e=Big-East

Click on St. John's. Bashir Ahmed is one of their 4 star players, and one of 12 4 stars in the 2016 class. If you look at the high school list, only 11 Big East players are ranked 4 stars.

High school list:
http://247sports.com/Season/2016-Basket ... highschool

JUCO list:
http://247sports.com/Season/2016-Basket ... iorCollege

[GumbyDamnit!]

The problem with comparing the 2014 class to the 2017 class is that in the 2014 class many teams needed big numbered classes. Xavier, Providence, Georgetown, and Seton Hall all had classes with more than 4 recruits. The 2017 class doesn't need the numbers that 2014 had to do the job the 2017 class needs to do for the Big East.

Great point John W!

30 recruits brought in with the 2014 class and only 20 so far with the 2017 class. So you would expect the larger # of Top 100 kids with a larger sample size. But % wise it is close. With not as many players leaving early and several players transferring in, it is not like BE schools need to turn over their rosters like UK, Duke, KU, etc. have to year in and year out.

Also interesting that both SHU and G'town had monster classes in 2014 (two top 25 kids and 5 Top 100 kids total). In 2017 only SHU has a single Top 100 kid, and G'town the big goose egg. And looking at their rosters you can see why. That 2014 class are all now upperclassmen, so it's not like Williard and Thompson had to bring in a big group, b/c there is not nearly the same amount of room at the inn. Telling.

[DudeAnon]

http://www.cbssports.com/college-basket ... ten-surge/

As of this moment, 60 of the top 100 prospects in the Class of 2017, according to 247Sports, have committed. And no league has more of those 60 than the Big Ten. Things break down like this:
Big Ten: 11
SEC: 10
Pac-12: 9
ACC: 9
Big East: 9
Big 12: 6
Atlantic 10: 2
C-USA: 2
American: 1
West Coast Conference: 1

First things first: it's important to note there are still 40 top-100 prospects who will, presumably, eventually commit somewhere, 30 of whom are in the top 50. And Kentucky still has zero commitments from the Class of 2017, which will obviously change at some point and maybe push the SEC to the top. So this is more of a mid-semester progress report than a final grade, meaning the list above could look quite different once the remaining top-100 prospects select a school.