Rivals Rankings Week: Duke finishes with No. 1 class
The Rivals150 for the class of 2024 has been finalized and put to bed, so now is as good a time as any to examine the final team rankings, where Duke boasts the nation’s top class. There will be some late movement among teams as the final uncommitted prospects find their colleges, but the dust has, for the most part, settled.
Below, Rivals national analyst Rob Cassidy dives into some of the cycle's most notable recruiting hauls.
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RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK
Monday: Five-Star Countdown
Tuesday: Final Rivals150 unveiled | Top storylines
Wednesday: Position rankings released | Position rankings breakdown
Thursday: Team rankings spotlight
Friday: Rivals Roundtable
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THE NO. 1 CLASS: Duke
It’s been roughly 14 months since Jon Scheyer said he intended to recruit fewer high school players in the transfer portal era, and it seems as though the Duke head coach either changed his mind or was lured in by high-level talent as the Blue Devils' six-man recruiting class tops the Rivals team rankings.
Obviously, the class is headlined by mega-prospect Cooper Flagg, the No. 1 prospect in the class and the current front-runner to go No. 1 in the 2025 NBA Draft. The Duke class is as versatile as it is star-studded, however.
The group hosts four five-star prospects, including three-level shot-creator Isaiah Evans, strong, hot-shooting wing Kon Knueppel and South Sudanese import Khaman Maluach, who is viewed as a potential future pro by most NBA scouts.
High-upside big man Patrick Ngongba and 6-foot-5 guard Darren Harris round out the Blue Devils’ third consecutive No. 1 class.
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THE RUNNER-UP: Rutgers
The surprise of the cycle, Rutgers checks in at No. 2 in the team rankings and boasts the highest-ranked class in program history. The haul is, of course, co-headlined by No. 2 prospect Airious Bailey and do-it-all guard Dylan Harper, who finished the cycle on the No. 3 line. Bailey’s pledge to the Scarlet Knights came as a bit of a shock and helped head coach Steve Pikiell recruit and ultimately land Harper, a legacy recruit who will follow his older brother Ron Harper Jr.’s footsteps to campus.
The five-star duo will arrive in Piscataway with sky-high expectations and attempt to will Rutgers to the NCAA tournament for the third time since 1991. Bailey and Harper are joined in the class by four-star center Lathan Sommerville as well as forwards Dylan Grant and Bryce Dortch. The class will attract some serious national attention to the program next season, as Harper and Bailey will be under the NBA microscope while Pikiell will be expected to will his talented roster to a single-digit seed in the tournament.
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THE SLEEPER HAUL: Clemson
Clemson ranks well outside of the top 10, checking in at No. 26 in the team rankings, but the Tigers’ three-member class is both talented and well-rounded. Head coach Brad Brownell's haul is headlined by 6-foot-8 wing Dallas Thomas, the No. 85 prospect in the class, but the other two pieces are also ranked inside the Rivals150.
Guard Ace Buckner had a spectacular senior season that allowed him to crash the rankings at No. 125 and earn four-star status. The son of Clemson Sports Hall of Famer Greg Buckner, Ace Bucker is a well-rounded guard that showed both scoring and facilitation prowess as a senior, turning heads especially quickly at the Hoophall Classic, where he went for 19 points and six assists against a stacked sunrise Christian squad. Buckner impacts games on the defensive end, too, due to his long frame and massive motor.
Three-star Del Jones, ranked No. 148 in the Rivals150, rounds out the Tigers' class.
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THE DEVELOPING STORY: Arkansas
All eyes are on Arkansas as the Razorbacks and new head coach John Calipari have zero commitments from high school prospects to their name for the time being. That will likely change soon, however, as most of Calipari’s loaded class at Kentucky have been released from their letters of intent and are back on the market.
The new Razorback coach was in Atlanta on Tuesday evening to meet with former UK signees Karter Knox and Somtochukwu Cyril and is pursuing a handful of other high-level prospects as well.
Calipari has also made overtures to five-star point guard Boogie Fland and four-star forward Billy Richmond, both of whom were signed with UK last month. Knox seems like a good bet to land at Arkansas, and Richmond’s father has a strong bond with Calipari, having played for the legendary coach at Memphis.
Fland and fellow five star Jayden Quaintance seem more likely to consider other, non-Arkansas programs than aforementioned Knox and Richmond, however, so Calipari may have a tussle on his hands if he hopes to re-sign all four prospects. The situation will certainly be one the most interesting storylines of the late cycle.