Duke4life831 wrote:clyde21 wrote:ive said this before but honestly the 2024 HS class doesn't look too appetizing of a crop either, even though the top 3-4 look a lot better than this year's but after that it's also a lot of mehhhhh.
Flagg/Ace/Harper are obvious studs, Gonzalez could be really good, but other than that nobody really stands out to me. JQ looks too short to be a legitimate NBA prospect for his position, Maluach is meh, Edgecombe/Johnson/Jackson are the usual combo guards types, etc.
hopefully top 3 don't flop otherwise it could be another brutal class.
Yup should be more fun to talk about if the top 3 guys live up to the hype. But ya I agree after that its a steep fall off and looks like a similar draft to this current one. I wont lie, I was more hyped about VJ Edgecombe leading up to the last month or so. Because most places had him listed at 6'4-6'5 and I knew he didnt have long arms but I didnt think his length would be an issue.
Then those first measurements from the hoop summit came out, and I believe those measurements far more than the "updated" ones that came out a day later. I think some handlers and agents got on the phone and made some promises of future players not showing up, if they didnt "update" the measurements. There is a reason why the US players dont get measured there.
But ya Edgecombe's measurements of 6'3 with a 6'5 wingspan is rough. And then seeing him around all the other top guys in the class over the last few weeks with these games and practices. He definitely looks like a small guard. And because of that, he went from a guy I thought had some high level potential, to "oh another athletic small scoring guard".
Yeah, the "experts" ran with this 2025 draft class is weak awhile ago which is of course laughable given how they hadn't even seen them all on the same court together in H.S. showcases let alone stepping foot on college campuses so I'm not surprised this is the prevailing narrative on here. I know the "experts" love to give too much weight to how many 5 stars are in high school classes based on the opinions of other clueless "experts" to gauge draft class strengths 18 months before drafts, so this is to be expected. At this point I'd be disappointed if this wasn't the case.
I've barely scratched the surface researching this class and I'm more excited for it than any class since 2017. It has that type of potential. Could be an all-timer. But it's just a feeling based on very little information at this point. But I've been doing this long enough and well enough to trust my instincts.
As good as the returning class is in 2024, 2025 could be just as good. We already know guys like Bradshaw, Foster, Ivisic, Wagner, Stojakovic, Boswell and Mgbako are returning. There'll likely be another 1/2 dozen returning guys not currently even being considered that will come out of nowhere like Knecht, Watkins, McCullar, and da Silva did this year, and a whole bunch of guys that declared for 2024 will end up returning when they get poor feedback like just happened with Onyenso. So there's a lot of promise for the 2025 returning class.
I don't expect the 2025 international class to be able to compete with 2024 but it could have Yang if he doesn't come out, it will have Hugo and Traore and there's a couple other promising guys. It looks to be at worse an average international class.
So it's going to come down to the H.S. class and I just feel like there's as much overall talent as 2023 and 2024 but unlike those classes it has elite guys at the top. So I fail to see how it could possibly be considered weak at this point.
