Top 10 classes of the past 25 years (per Telep)

[twodaparty]

http://insider.espn.go.com/college-sports/recruiting/basketball/mens/story/_/id/8628884/ranking-top-10-basketball-recruiting-classes-25-years

1. 1991 Michigan
Key recruits: Chris Webber, Juwan Howard, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King, Ray Jackson
This class played in two national title games and had a major cultural impact on college basketball. A more talented group might one day be assembled, but it'll be unlikely to have the overall impact this class had on the game.


2. 2006 North Carolina
Key recruits: Brandan Wright, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington, Deon Thompson, Alex Stepheson, Will Graves
This group sneaks into the conversation based on the strength of having three players who were No. 1 at their position: Wright, Lawson and Ellington. The depth of this class is undeniable.


3. 2011 Kentucky
Key recruits: Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Marquis Teague, Kyle Wiltjer
Davis was the best player in the country and Kidd-Gilchrist played the game as hard as any player we've seen in the past decade.


4. 1998 UCLA
Key recruits: Dan Gadzuric, JaRon Rush, Jerome Moiso, Ray Young, Matt Barnes
The Bruins scored three players ranked in the top 10 and Moiso was the most notable hoops Frenchman until along came a guy named Tony Parker. This class was a Steve Lavin special.


5. 2009 Kentucky
Key recruits: John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Daniel Orton, Eric Bledsoe, Jon Hood
John Calipari's first recruiting class at UK was assembled weeks after he got the job. The value recruit in the class turned out to be Bledsoe, and four of the five left after one year, thus creating the blueprint for Calipari's revolving door at the point and big man positions.


6. 1999 Duke
Key recruits: Jason Williams, Carlos Boozer, Casey Sanders, Mike Dunleavy, Nick Horvath
It was a great class on paper at the time, and it matured on the court at Duke with a national title and in the NBA for three of the guys.


7. 2013 Kentucky
Key recruits: Andrew Harrison, Aaron Harrison, James Young, Marcus Lee, Derek Willis
Hard to believe this class is on the list and it's still not finished. Play a fun game with your friends and insert No. 1 recruit Andrew Wiggins or No. 4 Julius Randle into the class and see where it ranks.


8. 1993 North Carolina
Key recruits: Jerry Stackhouse, Rasheed Wallace, Jeff McInnis
This group will be remembered fondly for Stackhouse's famous dunk against Duke and not so fondly for ending Dean Smith's run of Sweet 16 appearances with a loss to Boston College in the 1994 tourney.


9. 1997 Duke
Key recruits: Elton Brand, Shane Battier, Chris Burgess, William Avery
This is what makes ranking the classes based on paper and not what happened afterward both interesting and difficult. Had Burgess met expectations -- he's considered one of the biggest recruiting flops -- this team could have been even better.


T-10. 2005 Kansas
Key recruits: Julian Wright, Brandon Rush, Mario Chalmers, Micah Downs
Bill Self got some mileage out of this bunch. This is one of the most athletic classes you'll see on the list.


T-10. 1989 Indiana
Key recruits: Lawrence Funderburke, Pat Graham, Chris Reynolds, Calbert Cheaney, Greg Graham, Chris Lawson
IU's best recruiting class might have been 1979 with Isiah Thomas, Jim Thomas and Randy Wittman, but this one wasn't too shabby.


Honorable Mention
1990 Louisville
1990 North Carolina
1992 Kentucky
1994 Michigan
1999 Kansas
2002 North Carolina
2002 Duke
2006 Ohio State
2008 UCLA
2010 Kentucky
2012 UCLA
2012 Kentucky

[twodaparty]

He ends the article with (giving props to the 2004 Florida Basketball recruiting class):

For your consideration...
While constructing this list, it hit me: Where is Florida's 2004 class? Remember that quaint little recruiting class that produced two national championships and pros Al Horford, Corey Brewer and Joakim Noah? It's hard to fathom now, but that class was not a consensus top-five group coming into college. Only Brewer was a top-25 player.

If we're factoring in post-signing success, I think there's a reasonable argument that can be made for that trio plus Taurean Green as possibly the best recruiting class of the past 25 years given the national championships.

See, that's the dilemma of making a list like this. It's also the fun. There's no right answer and endless debate. Recruiting junkies will blow up the list and come up with their own. And honestly, isn't that the fun of recruiting anyway?

[twodaparty]

Notice he has the 2013 Kentucky class on there already. Well, what if we were to land one or both of Randle and Parker? Couldn't we jump them?

[TheRaid]

Too many too recent to be credible. Contrary to popular sentiment, the greatest accomplishments are not all in recent memory or during the media or Internet age.

[twodaparty]

Too many too recent to be credible. Contrary to popular sentiment, the greatest accomplishments are not all in recent memory or during the media or Internet age.

He did say top 10 recruiting classes of the past 25 years and went back as far as 1989, with teams also from 1991, 1993, 1998 and 1999 in his top 10...

[tupacbiff]

Telep's biggest problem is himself. He is too dumb to understand what he is not good at.

[REM08]

Notice he has the 2013 Kentucky class on there already. Well, what if we were to land one or both of Randle and Parker? Couldn't we jump them?

I'd certainly think it'd be possible, especially if you landed both. This isnt taking into consideration UK adding more also though.

[twodaparty]

I'd certainly think it'd be possible, especially if you landed both. This isnt taking into consideration UK adding more also though.

True. Something also to consider are the high quality transfers we have who essentially are part of the recruiting class although technically they won't count toward rankings. Therefore, if we were to land even one of the elite recruits left, I would take our class hands down over Kentucky's.

[GatorLurker]

Does any team hang banners in the gym for #1 recruiting classes?

[dailydoublecat]

Does any team hang banners in the gym for #1 recruiting classes?

I think UNC does lol

[REM08]

I think UNC does lol

Yup. Next to the Helm's titles.

[ArtVandelay]

Two Keys in Lexington hangs banners in the bar for Bowl Wins (any bowl qualifies) :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

[dailydoublecat]

Two Keys in Lexington hangs banners in the bar for Bowl Wins (any bowl qualifies) :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

How many banners is there? Are they hanging if we get to a bowl, or if we win only?

Jeff

[ArtVandelay]

How many banners is there? Are they hanging if we get to a bowl, or if we win only?

Jeff

It's been awhile since I was there. Now that you mention it, I think it is just if they make the bowl game. I think I have a picture at home. I will post it later.

[InstiGATOR1]

Too many too recent to be credible. Contrary to popular sentiment, the greatest accomplishments are not all in recent memory or during the media or Internet age.

Exactly.

BTW, despite ESPN doing some film on the them, the Michigan class hardly had the cultural impact ESPN keeps claiming.

[Bradass]

This list makes no sense.

[dailydoublecat]

It's been awhile since I was there. Now that you mention it, I think it is just if they make the bowl game. I think I have a picture at home. I will post it later.

LOL thanks---I bet it is a bare area regardless :)

Jeff

[ApexNC]

I actually like that we don't have any classes listed. Going by that and the fact that Billy and our program has arguably been as successful as any of those programs over the same time period shows what a great coach Billy is....from talent evaluation to player development, he is elite!

[your_perfect_enemy]

This list makes no sense.

Thats what I was thinking. Who cares who had the top recruiting class according to the services? Wouldn't something like, oh I don't know, actual success be more important?

I've never heard of half of unc's 06 class, how great could they be?

What about our class that had Kwame Brown, James White and David Lee? I know Kwame never made it to campus and was a bust in the nba, but I'm pretty sure he signed before declaring. If we're just going by silly recruiting rankings they would have to be up there

[themistocles]

That was the most idiotic thing I have ever seen.

First of all, how can you rate a class that is not only not historical, but is almost two years into the future to see what results occur: 2013 Kentucky.

Since when do you rate classes on recruiting rankings rather than performance???????

What imaginary universe does this guy live in anyway?

He must be a university professor, and surely one of those who lives strictly in a world of theory (e.g. a physicist, mathematician or some such)

[regurgigator]

Yeah, I was looking at the list without Florida's 04's, and it made me think of the list of all-time best Gator wide receivers someone put on this site a few months ago that didn't include Wes Chandler :laugh:


Considering the part the 04's played in 2 consecutive championships (providing 4 starters in both championship seasons), I think a very strong case could be made that the 04's were the best recruiting class of the last 25 years - bar none.

[GothamGator]

This list should now be Exhibit A in Tupac's long running ad hominem attacks on Telep. This article is so bad it's ridiculous.