247 Basketball Analyst Jerry Meyer on Kobe Bufkin: "I could even see 5-star."
Jerry Meyer posted the following article today (link) about the best signing day fits nationally, and #1 on his list was Bufkin going to Michigan. In the article Meyer says:
His current No. 63 ranking in the 247Sports Composite doesn’t do him justice and is expected to shoot up in the industries next ranking cycle.
Bufkin is currently the #63 player in the Composite rankings and #88 to 247's internal rankings, the lowest of the 3 services on him. In the comments on the Michigan board someone asked Meyer how high Bufkin may climb and Meyer's response is:
I could even see 5-star. Don't think that is too crazy of a thought at the moment.
Currently in 247's internal ratings, new Michigan signee Moussa Diabate is the first 4 star at #20 overall (he's #20 in the composite as well but a 5 star, and also expected to rise into the definitive 5 star category soon). In the Composite, Bryce McGowens is the #25 overall player and last 5 star (expected to commit to Nebraska tomorrow). For Bufkin to climb to 5 star status at 247, the service lowest on him currently, means he would be in line for a rise of potentially 70ish spots in 247's internal rankings. That would easily be enough to bump him into the top 50 in the Composite nationally, and depending and what ESPN/Rivals do with him may give him an outside shot at 5 star in the Composite.
When all is said and done I don't expect Bufkin to make that big a rise to 5 star status, but at the end of the day Michigan could potentially have three 5 stars to at least one service in this class, and is most likely going to end with at least 2 Composite 5 stars, another 2 players in the top 50 of the Composite, another 4 star and another high 3 star. Plus the small odds of another add by Juwan and co. This is just an absolutely monster class Michigan is bringing in.
November 13th, 2020 at 1:01 AM ^
Wait wait wait ... Nebraska is getting a 5* basketball player?
November 13th, 2020 at 1:11 AM ^
Yeah what
November 13th, 2020 at 11:43 AM ^
Hoiberg is a really good college coach. No so much in the pros.
November 13th, 2020 at 1:28 AM ^
It must be a football player...wait that doesn't make sense either...
November 13th, 2020 at 2:04 AM ^
That'd be like IU being a powerhouse in football
November 13th, 2020 at 10:14 AM ^
too soon
November 13th, 2020 at 4:34 AM ^
Nebraska is a basketball school too?
November 13th, 2020 at 4:52 AM ^
Like Michigan, Nebraska is now a Basketball school.
November 13th, 2020 at 8:24 AM ^
When did Nebraska become a school? Mind blowing info in this thread
November 13th, 2020 at 10:02 AM ^
Uh where have you been man? You don't remember their illustrious post season highlights like that uh...one NCAA tournament appearance they've had since 1998 where they um...lost right away? Basketball powerhouse in Lincoln
November 13th, 2020 at 8:16 AM ^
I read somewhere that his brother plays at Nebraska.
November 13th, 2020 at 9:10 AM ^
I’m all for it. Basketball is so much less dependent on winning every conference game than football (obvious, I know) that I don’t feel like I have to root against the good recruiting of other schools. In fact I think with the NET it’s much more preferable to have a well rounded conference. So something like this is cool from a “hey, the big ten is recruiting better than it has in decades” perspective.
November 13th, 2020 at 9:11 AM ^
Yup. His older brother just transferred to Nebraska from Pitt, and Hoiberg is trying to work his magic.
November 13th, 2020 at 12:43 PM ^
He must REALLY like corn.
November 13th, 2020 at 2:30 AM ^
On a related note, is Michigan still pursuing Efton Reid? Or it Chet Holmgren or bust?
November 13th, 2020 at 9:17 AM ^
From what I've seen, it sounds like Michigan is most likely going to end this class with the six we currently have. They're going to go after the super highly rated guys left on the board (Chet/Patrick Williams/Jaden Hardy/Hunter Sallis), but the odds of landing any of them is low.
I think the Reid recruitment is pretty much dead in the water. I'm sure Reid doesn't want to go to Michigan with Diabate and Dickinson both there to play the 5, and I also think Michigan would rather go after the guys I listed above. Maybe there's a universe where all those guys I listed commit elsewhere/go pro and Reid still wants to come, in which case I assume he's a take, but I don't think that's likely.
November 13th, 2020 at 10:35 AM ^
Michigan is most likely going to end this class with the six we currently have
Matt made a comment in the Diabate Hello post that said we may not be done with class. He's been pretty spot on historically so I'm curious what intel he has
November 13th, 2020 at 10:58 AM ^
I mean I think it's exactly what I said. We have six but will continue pursuing the top 10 guys were in on that I listed. If we land one, massive celebration ensues and we have 7. But realistically it'll be hard to land any of them so we'll end at 6.
November 13th, 2020 at 11:19 AM ^
You could very well be right, but
Juwan Howard and crew may not be done for 2021 just yet. Things could get very interesting
sounds like there may be something of substance there. Either way, this is a great class
November 13th, 2020 at 2:29 PM ^
A grad transfer guard would be nice. The backcourt will be really green next season.
November 13th, 2020 at 4:24 AM ^
Frankie Collins has an endless motor, watched him tonight and he never left the floor and hustled the whole time and is a big time difference maker on the floor.
Some of his play was a bit spotty but he's so quick and is quite a leader, he's gonna be easy to root for.
November 13th, 2020 at 11:46 AM ^
So, you're saying Zavier plus Association level potential? Sign me up.
November 13th, 2020 at 4:12 PM ^
He didn't show it last night, but usually I think he's a much better shooter than Simpson and free throw shooter too, so yeah if we can get Simpson level play plus those 2 things then we're going to be really good at PG.
November 13th, 2020 at 7:09 PM ^
Zeb will be answering all of your PG questions soon.
November 13th, 2020 at 6:56 AM ^
I could even see 5-star.
November 13th, 2020 at 8:49 AM ^
Operating under the assumption that this class ends up on campus-it is a sensational class. That said, I also believe that Michigan will attempt to add another big man to this class to hedge for Diabate blowing up and going pro. And if Reid or Holmgren end up here-or Bediako as more of a project...oh my. Lots of excellent options remain.
November 13th, 2020 at 8:53 AM ^
I have seen Bufkin play up close a few times and I would equate him to a left handed Jordan Poole. He has tons of potential and is going to be a nice player for us. Looking forward to see how well he improves with Howard coaching him.
November 13th, 2020 at 9:23 AM ^
First off, the rankings don't necessarily affect my opinion of the prospects.
That being said, I also doubt we will see as much upward movement as is being hinted at here. As you noted, Bufkin is #88 in 247's rankings. It would take a truly meteoric rise for him to be a 5* in 247's rankings. Matt has said too that a ranking of around 60 is appropriate for him in his opinion. I would expect Bufkin to move up to around 50ish in 247's internal rankings, and somewhere similar in the composite. I like Bufkin, but he doesn't necessarily have the positional versatility or elite skill or atheticism that 247 generally looks for. I think Bufkin could have a Jordan Poole-esque career arc here.
Diabate is interesting because he already was a top 10 player in 247's rankings. I'm not sure if they would bounce him back to the same spot. But he has shown improved shooting skill so I guess it is possible.
Collins I would say is a bit of a known quantity. 247 is again the laggard here, having him at #72 vs around #40 on the other services. Watching him last night, it seemed clear he wasn't there yet as a shooter. 247 could bump him, but I don't think he's dramatically improved in any way recently.
I do think Isaiah Barnes is underrated. He's a phenomenal athlete and for that alone should be higher than the #37 SG as ESPN has him, especially if he's taller than the 6'5" they say.
November 13th, 2020 at 10:47 AM ^
I like Bufkin, but he doesn't necessarily have the positional versatility or elite skill or atheticism that 247 generally looks for
I disagree. I'm not sure if you've seen Bufkin play recently but he looks completely different than he did in his junior year. More athletic, more developed, game looks more effortless. He could likely play the 1, 2, or 3 based on different line ups in my opinion. This video of Bufkin from mid October shows a completely different player than he was his junior year. Obviously it's just pick up, but he's also been dominating camps with other legit talents. Analysts have been raving about him. Isaiah Barnes is also in that video and while a good player, he seems like a lesser Jalen Wilson and isn't as athletic as some people seem to think
November 13th, 2020 at 9:25 AM ^
good basketball player may be slightly more better than thought, sounds good
November 13th, 2020 at 10:03 AM ^
I have yet to see Bufkin. Is there any recent footage of him that portray why analysts are bumping him up so high?
I have seen quite a bit of Akins, and he is an absolute stud. I guess i am a little surprised their is talk about Bufkin moving up a ton instead of Akin.
November 13th, 2020 at 10:48 AM ^
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6A8OfoGruY&t=533s
This is the most recent highlights of him from YouTube
November 13th, 2020 at 11:11 AM ^
Kind of difficult to judge anything from that video, but thanks for posting.
November 13th, 2020 at 11:53 AM ^
Check out the highlights from the Pangos All American camp they just held last week. Sorry I’d post the link but don’t know how to do it on my phone. He played against the top talent and did great. Really has an all around game. Good handle, court vision with more spring to his bounce then prior tape I’ve seen. Was also great on the defensive end of the court too. He’s gonna be a great Wolverine!
November 13th, 2020 at 2:57 PM ^
Went to website - on Midwest team, number 1 is Frankie and 4 is Bufkin - just have to find out what color/team Midwest is. Should be easy since Chet Holmgren is on same team.
November 13th, 2020 at 10:04 AM ^
if Juwan proves to be just a nominally good coach, this recruiting level should keep us real good for a while
November 13th, 2020 at 11:31 AM ^
Frieder-esque
November 13th, 2020 at 10:32 AM ^
He'll definitely end up a top 50 player and I could potentially see him being a 5 star in this relatively weak class. Bufkin has seriously improved this offseason though. Watching his recent highlights he looks completely different than from his junior year. He looks more physically developed and athletic and makes the game look easy
November 13th, 2020 at 10:41 AM ^
our football program has ceded all its stars to the basketball program.
November 13th, 2020 at 11:20 AM ^
Now we just gotta hope that we actually play basketball this year.........
November 13th, 2020 at 11:34 AM ^
So ... how does Howard work with the academic rules and get the #1 class with 5 stars, but Harbaugh struggles more?
November 13th, 2020 at 2:37 PM ^
Just my opinion, but Howard seems to have a far more charismatic way about him, compared to Harbaugh. And that fact that Howard is black doesn't hurt either.
November 14th, 2020 at 8:08 AM ^
I think these are good points and should be strongly considered the focal points for finding our next football coach.
November 13th, 2020 at 1:05 PM ^
A truly impressive class. But one good thing I can see about the G-League starting to throw real cash around to 18 year-olds is that going to UK/Duke or another blue-blood to get paid is probably even less of a motivator (and it's not like a championship, or even playing time, is a lock at some of those schools). Likely will be better for some athletes to invest their time into programs that can build their skills over a year or two and maximize their value in the league.
November 13th, 2020 at 6:46 PM ^
Did Isaiah Barnes sign his loi today? There's been very little hoops coverage considering we have the number one class in the nation.