Top ESPN Basketball Sleeper Recruiting Classes (Paywalled)
ESPN came out with another list of top "sleepers", this time referring to basketball recruiting. I know it sounds dumb since ESPN could just change their rankings, but they make a strong point stating
"Finding the right fit, meshing players and developing talent all play a role in how recruiting classes grow and excel at the college level. With that in mind, we've identified five sleeper recruiting classes -- defined here as any class ranked outside the top 10 -- most likely to outperform their ranking."
Essentially, there's more to how good they think a class is than just the individual rankings of players. The fit is very important was well. And this is something I think we can all agree on.
Michigan checks in as the number 2 "sleeper" (and the 12th best class) behind Marquette (ranked 11th best class). Also included at 3, 4, and 5 respectively are BYU (14th), California (26th) and Iowa State (30th).
This seems to be pointing out what we all know already, Beilein doesn't necessarily recruit the best players like you get at Kentucky, but he finds the players that fit his system and then they excel.
Note: I know some of you don't like paywalled articles, but my thoughts are that I would rather have a short synopsis of some paywalled article that can fascilitate discussion over no post at all.
I was hoping that you were posting the same article you posted yesterday. I think all of our heads would have exploded if you did that.
I OFFICIALLY HATE PAYWALLED ARTICLES!
I offically hate Kentucky. No matter where they finish or where they're ranked.
and our class with basically 2 5 stars in it is underrated. We're going to win like 5 national titles next year
Really glad for this post. Different from yesterday, still very much appreciated. You distilled what was important and relevant to Michigan. Don't let negative Nancy' stop you . . . keep on posting.
This article tells me two things:
1. ESPN isn't high on the #13 class (since they picked the 1st, 2nd, and 4th highest rated classes outside their top-10 for this column).
2. ESPN likes Cal and Iowa State.
Doesn't say too much about Marquette, Michigan, or BYU considering those were just the highest rated options they were allowed to use.