Bruce Weber Is Leveling Up
The 2017-2018 Wildcats shocked the world by making the Elite 8. They followed that up with a Big 12 Championship on the court while Coach Weber hit home runs off the court.
Let's take a look at the recruiting classes under Bruce Weber at Kansas State:
| Recruiting Class | 247Sports.com Rank |
|---|---|
2012 | #101 |
2013 | #47 |
2014 | #65 |
2015 | #63 |
2016 | #71 |
2017 | #92 |
2018 | #101 |
2019 | #54 |
2020 | #15 |
It's important to note that the 2018 class was all but finalized by the time March Madness wrapped up. The Cats were able to add a top JUCO rebounding specialist in Austin Trice after their Elite 8 run - who has since transferred.
The 2019 class was a nice step up, including the prized jewel in Chicago Player of The Year in DaJuan Gordon (#163 overall). The freshman is expected to be a contributor right away on a roster that already has a lot of established players.
Back to the current season in a moment, but first let's take a look at the 2020 class that Bruce is putting together:
| Name | Position | National Rank |
|---|---|---|
Nijel Pack | Point Guard | #102 |
Selton Miguel | Small Forward | #139 |
Luke Kasubke | Shooting Guard | #156 |
This is already the best recruiting class since the 2007 class that included Beasley/Walker/Pullen/Sutton/etc. - and Coach Weber is still looking to add to it. Adding this group with DaJuan Gordon has the potential to be a scary core for the Wildcats in a couple of years.
I strongly believe that Weber has a great chance this year and the next year to have another deep tournament run. They also have a good shot at another Big 12 Championship. Losing Mawien and Sneed after this year will be difficult to overcome next season unless there is a lot of development from the younger guys. The good news is that Cartier Diarra has a chance to be a star, and I think Mike McGuirl is a lot better than most people realize.
What Weber was able to accomplish with Dean Wade, Barry Brown and Kamau Stokes was truly impressive. It's going to be fascinating to see what he can do with more talented high school recruits. #LevelUp