To those that say recruiting has not fallen off...

[Capt. Tuttle]

There's a difference between a 3 point shooter and a sharp shooter. A 3 point shooter is a "maybe" the shot will go in if they shoot. A sharp shooter is "that ball will probably go in the hoop." Sharp shooters are players teams build a game plan around - and are often superstars, while people who shoot 33% from long range are just considered someone who can hit the occasional three point shot.

Let's get back on track of recruiting, though, and it would be nice if you posted without personal attacks.

There are few people in history who meet your definition of sharp shooters, especially from 3. Your definition means they make 50+% of their shots.

 

[IthacaMatt]

When I look at rankings, I generally look at the composite ranking on the site we’re not allowed to mention here. I can promise you that any kid that is in the composite top 100 for any given class is a 4 star. I have yet to see a 3 star in any top 100 list on a major site.

When I say "grades" I mean recruiting ratings.
Somebody like Oshea Brissett or several other guys wound up rated 3.7, not 4.0 stars, because maybe 1 or 2 out of three sites had them in different tiers. DuJuan Coleman was a 5 star on some sites, dropped to a 4 on a couple others, and wound up rated a 4.3 or a 4.7. That's what I'm talking about. There are ranges between pure 5 stars, pure 4 stars, and people who are better than a generic 3 star, but maybe not top 75.

 

[jmcclure33]

When I say "grades" I mean recruiting ratings.
Somebody like Oshea Brissett or several other guys wound up rated 3.7, not 4.0 stars, because maybe 1 or 2 out of three sites had them in different tiers. DuJuan Coleman was a 5 star on some sites, dropped to a 4 on a couple others, and wound up rated a 4.3 or a 4.7. That's what I'm talking about. There are ranges between pure 5 stars, pure 4 stars, and people who are better than a generic 3 star, but maybe not top 75.

I understand what you’re saying, that’s why I look at the composite ranking on the other site. A kid may be in the top 100 and ranked 4 stars on one site but 3 stars and out of the top 100 on another. But if they’re a composite (average ranking of all sites put together) top 100 player, that player is most certainly a 4 star, even if they’re ranked 99th overall. But someone like Brissett wasn’t ranked at all on some sites due to playing in Canada, drastically skewing his composite ranking.

 

[Funk Doc]

To be honest I could care less about recruit rankings. We just need to do a better job at evaluating basketball talent and not focus on zone fit athletes. That is what has killed us, not that we haven’t landed high ranked recruits. I mean would any of us turn down Morant or Hunter? Heck no! They both were ranked very low and are going in the lottery. The game has changed, and you can’t out athlete teams anymore. You have to move the ball and be able to shoot.

I like the direction the next class seems to be heading, having some shooters in it. We need to keep our focus on that.

Oh...and get a big that can actually do something with the ball!!!!!

 

[HoustonCuse]

I give you a little bit of background on Top 100 recruits we have taken in over the last 15 years...I understand rankings aren't perfect, but in basketball you get a better idea than you do with football, IMO, just due to tapes being available and the AAU circuit allowing comparisons that couldn't be made in football.

2005 - Eric Devendorf #33 (McD), Arinze Onuaku (#201)
2006 - Paul Harris #12, Mike Jones #38, Devin Brennan-McBride (#157)
2007 - Donte Greene #7 (#17 ESPN) (McD), Jonny Flynn #18 (#23 ESPN) (McD), Scoop Jardine #53 (#48 ESPN), Rick Jackson #65 (#51 ESPN), Kristof Ongenaet (#279), Sean Williams (#284)
2008 - Mookie Jones #43 (#67 ESPN), Kris Joseph #58 (#50 ESPN)
2009 - DaShonte Riley #87 (#58 ESPN), Brandon Triche (#122)
2010 - Fab Melo #14 (#14 ESPN) (McD), Dion Waiters #21 (#15 ESPN), C.J. Fair #81 (#63 ESPN), Baye Moussa Keita (#146)
2011 - Rakeem Christmas #23 (#20 ESPN) (McD), Michael Carter Williams #26 (#21 ESPN) (McD), Trevor Cooney #61 ESPN (#105)
2012 - Dajuan Coleman #22 (#14 ESPN) (McD), Jerami Grant #48 (#37 ESPN)
2013 - Tyler Ennis #23 (#20 ESPN), Tyler Roberson #41 (#31 ESPN), B.J. Johnson #89 (#82 ESPN), Ron Patterson (#175)
2014 - Chris McCullough #21 (#24 ESPN), Kaleb Joseph #48 (#50 ESPN)
2015 - Malachi Richardson #34 (#23 ESPN) (McD), Tyler Lydon #72 (#76 ESPN), Frank Howard #79 (#94 ESPN)
2016 - Tyus Battle #34 (#35 ESPN), Matt Moyer #66 (#74 ESPN), Taurean Thompson #74 (#75 ESPN)
2017 - Marek Dolezaj (#111, SLO), Oshae Brissett (#137, CAN), Bourama Sidibe (#190), Howard Washington (#289)
2018 - Jalen Carey #61 (#38 ESPN), Robert Braswell (#152), Buddy Boeheim (#347)
2019 - Brycen Goodine #93 (#75 ESPN), Quincy Guerrier (#114, CAN), Joe Girard (#205), Jon Bol Ajak (#404)

These rankings are using 24 7 & ESPN -- I know other sites may see things a bit differently, but to be consistent I used the same sites.

Over the past 3 years, we have had ZERO Consensus Top 50 recruits make it to campus, according to these site. Not all Top 50 guys make it -- look at Joseph & Roberson -- but certainly it gives you a better chance to make it than if you aren't. You can argue Brissett and Guerrier are Top 50 caliber, but the fact of the matter is they aren't.

Can you blame sanctions? Sure you can. But all of the guys that we have whiffed on? I don't think that's true at all.

So Buddy Boeheim is the worst player to put on a Syracuse uniform at least since 2005 - let alone start a game - and maybe in the history of the program? Cool.

 

[SUFan44]

So Buddy Boeheim is the worst player to put on a Syracuse uniform at least since 2005 - let alone start a game - and maybe in the history of the program? Cool.

Not what I said. There can be misses and players under the radar. But to be elite/Top 25, you need some Top 25-40 talent.

 

[Cusefan0307]

The OP is too caught up in the rankings.

A lot of those top gets we got nothing out of. McCullough. Joseph. Mike Jones was here for a week and he did nothing once he left. Mookie jones was a bust. Roberson was never as good as we thought he would be. ick.