Rival Views: The nation's most irreplaceable freshman

Rivals.com national basketball recruiting analysts Eric Bossi and Corey Evans don’t always see eye to eye. In this edition of Rival Views, the two debate the identity of the most irreplaceable freshman in college basketball.

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On this topic, much of it depends on the factors that matter to you in making somebody irreplaceable. For me, it’s about what would happen if you took that one player off of this year’s team and how tough they will be to replace next season. For that reason, NC State’s point guard Dennis Smith is the most irreplaceable freshman in America.

When the Wolfpack desperately needed a win at Duke to keep their shrinking tournament hopes alive, it was Smith who came through with a command performance on national television. Has Smith been perfect? Of course not. He was more a less a no show when NC State got blasted by 51 points at North Carolina earlier this month. But, for the most part he’s been awesome and his 19.5 points, 4.4 rebounds and 6.5 assists are the primary reason that State is even sniffing the NCAA Tournament right now.

Other point guards like Lonzo Ball at UCLA and De’Aaron Fox have legit claims to be considered the best freshman point guards in America, but both the Bruins and Wildcats have enough talent around them to cover for them if they were to lose them and they each have McDonald’s All-Americans on the way to replace them next year. Obviously, Washington’s Markelle Fultz is also putting up ludicrous numbers, but the Huskies are likely too far out of the race as it is. In Raleigh, if they lose Smith they likely lose any hope at the tournament. Furthermore, there isn’t anybody on the horizon that looks to be a good candidate to come close to replicating what he does next season-- though freshman Markell Johnson will develop into a good player down the road.

A couple of other guys that I would consider irreplaceable are Josh Jackson at Kansas and Jonathan Isaac at Florida State. Jackson has had to play an awful lot as a small-ball four man this year but has managed to stay highly productive. Meanwhile, Isaac may be having the best freshman season that isn’t getting a ton of publicity. His spectacular play over the past few weeks has allowed the Seminoles to navigate the dangerous ACC and, as good as their recruiting class is, they don't have anybody who can replicate what the versatile forward does on a nightly basis.

Frankly, this could be an endless debate and there are a bunch of other guys I’ve not touched on. But in my eyes, Smith is the most irreplaceable freshman in America.

The talk surrounding Sean Miller of late, whether it’s warranted or not, is the fact that he is the best coach to not reach a Final Four. After his team’s two most recent visits to the Elite Eight, Miller took a page out of the squad that he was defeated by, Wisconsin, in finding his star power forward that has been prototypical big man in Madison.

Lauri Markkanen, a polished 7-foot freshman, came to the United States with little fanfare compared to the rest of his elite peers. Yet all he has done during his short time in Tucson has been torch the nets, rebound the basketball and create for one of the most difficult matchup issues that you’re going to find on the college platform this winter.

While replacing Markkanen might seem like it will be a smooth transition as the Wildcats welcome in five-star big men DeAndre Ayton next fall, things are much more difficult than they appear. While Ayton has improved his jumper, the Finnish-born Markkanen knocks down 50 percent of his perimeter attempts, which opens up easier driving lanes for his teammates. His impact there cannot be overstated.

Markkanen’s value cements his case as the most difficult freshman to replace, a testatment to just how good he has been considering the strength of the elite 2016 recruiting class.

Outside of Markkanen, there are a few others that will be more difficult to replace compared to most others. Justin Patton, a rapidly improving big man for the Creighton Blue Jays, is the type of interior producer that Greg McDermott has never had the chance to coach during his time in Omaha. Patton scores with premier efficiency around the basket while giving his sharpshooting teammates more room out on the perimeter.

Kentucky will continue to remain a monster on the recruiting trail and while the 2017 recruiting class is already elite, replacing Malik Monk will be a tough job. Sure, Hamidou Diallo, Quade Green and Shai Alexander all bring great talent to the floor but none of the three can shoot the ball like Monk.

To go off the radar some, the impact that Anthony Cowan has on the rest of his teammates needs to be touched on. More than likely, Maryland’s star guard, Melo Trimble, will leave after this season, leaving the keys to the Terps basketball program in the hands of Cowan. Averaging 10 points, four rebounds and three assists per game, Cowan’s current impact and looming potential at the lead guard spot in College Park is more than promising.