Which college basketball teams will have the best recruits for the 2021-22 season?
The college basketball season is over, and the hype for the next one will reach a fever pitch soon enough.
Recent history tells us you need plenty of experience to win a national championship these days, and star freshmen alone are unlikely to do the job. Still, mixing in a blue-chipper or two with some veteran players could go a long way toward winning basketball games next March.
There are still some high-profile recruits from the 2021 class who have yet to make their college decisions, but we should have a pretty good idea of which programs will end up with the top-ranked recruiting classes for next season, especially with No. 2 overall prospect Jaden Hardy expected to go straight to the pros and No. 4 recruit Patrick Baldwin Jr. expected to join his father at mid-major Milwaukee.
So, knowing that, here’s a look at the top-ranked classes for 2021 (with the rankings coming from the 247Sports composite):
1. Michigan
The Wolverines earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and they almost advanced to the Final Four — falling just one shot short against UCLA — but Michigan should be right back in the national conversation next season. Coach Juwan Howard currently has the No. 1 recruiting class for 2021, a six-player group led by a pair of five-star power forwards: Caleb Houstan (the No. 8 player in the class) and Moussa Diabate (the No. 18 player in the class). The future appears to be bright in Ann Arbor.
2. Florida State
Coach Leonard Hamilton will be 73 years old when the 2021-22 season begins, and he’ll bring in what should be his best recruiting class yet in his 20th season as the Seminoles head coach. The former Kentucky assistant has four players signed from the 2021 class, a group led by small forward Matthew Cleveland (No. 22 in the 2021 class) and combo guard Jalen Warley (No. 28 in the 2021 class).
3. Alabama
Coach Nate Oats led the Crimson Tide to the Southeastern Conference title — and a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament — and he should have Alabama well-positioned to compete at the highest level again next season. As of Monday night, the Tide had the No. 19 class nationally and the second-best in the SEC behind Kentucky. That changed the next day with the commitment of 6-foot-11 center Charles Bediako — the No. 26 player in the 2021 class — to make a four-man class that already featured No. 9 recruit JD Davison, who 247Sports ranks as the No. 1 point guard nationally.
4. Duke
Coach Mike Krzyzewski has only three commitments from the 2021 class, but all three are McDonald’s All-Americans, and two of them are ranked among the top 10 players in the country. The class is led by Seattle power forward Paolo Banchero — the No. 3 player in 2021 and at one time Kentucky’s top recruiting target for this cycle — and also features small forward AJ Griffin (No. 7 nationally) and shooting guard Trevor Keels (No. 20 nationally). If small forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. — the No. 4 player in the class — turns down his father (Milwaukee head coach Pat Baldwin) then he’s expected to pick Duke. Such a scenario would give the Blue Devils the No. 1 class in the 247Sports rankings, though Milwaukee remains the consensus favorite for Baldwin.
5. Villanova
The Wildcats missed out on McDonald’s All-American Trevor Keels last week after looking like the favorite for a few weeks late in his recruitment, but Coach Jay Wright still has a stellar class coming in. Nova’s four-player class has zero five-star prospects, though all four are ranked in the top 125 nationally, with four-star power forward Trey Patterson leading the way at No. 33 overall.
6. Kentucky
The Cats might be done with recruiting — in high school, at least — for the 2021 cycle. If they are, the three-player class consisting of power forward Daimion Collins (No. 11 overall), small forward Bryce Hopkins (No. 27 overall) and point guard Nolan Hickman (No. 31 overall) is still one of the nation’s best. Kentucky is also expected to add more help this offseason from the NCAA transfer portal. The most likely high school addition, at this stage, would appear to be four-star shooting guard Tamar “Scoop” Bates, a former Texas signee who is considered to be the No. 56 player in the class, with that ranking expected to rise before the 2021 lists get finalized. Kentucky is one of several schools interested in Bates — and the Cats aren’t even yet considered a favorite in his recruitment — but, if Bates did pick UK, it would move John Calipari’s class to No. 2 nationally behind Michigan.
Gonzaga’s class
As the buzzer sounded on the national title game, Gonzaga’s recruiting class ranking sat at No. 31 nationally. Good, but not exactly noteworthy among the top groups in the country. That class, however, features just two players, and one of them is five-star combo guard Hunter Sallis, the No. 6 overall player in the class and the Zags’ top-ranked recruit of all time. (And the other is Washington native Kaden Perry, a center who is ranked as the nation’s No. 53 recruit). Gonzaga is also the favorite for multi-positional 7-footer Chet Holmgren, however, and he’s the No. 1 overall player in the 2021 class. If Holmgren does commit to Mark Few’s program, it would give the Zags the No. 6 class in the rankings, slotting them right behind Kentucky.
Rest of the top 10
7. Kansas: The Jayhawks have four commitments for next season, including power forward Zach Clemence (No. 39 nationally), as well as former Louisville point guard recruit Bobby Pettiford.
8. Memphis: The NIT champions are two years removed from bringing in the nation’s No. 1-ranked recruiting class, and Penny Hardaway again has a top-10 class — with four total commitments — led by small forward Josh Minott at No. 38 nationally.
9. Michigan State: McDonald’s All-American shooting guard Max Christie leads the Spartans’ three-player class, which also includes two other recruits ranked in the top 75 nationally.
10. Baylor: The Bears are national champions, and they should be formidable again next season, with McDonald’s All-American small forward Kendall Brown leading a three-player class that also features shooting guard Langston Love (the No. 34 overall player in the class).
This story was originally published April 5, 2021 at 11:27 PM.
