Rivals Rankings Week: Meet the four new five-stars
The latest Rivals150 update features plenty of moves, but none more noteworthy than the four players that earned five-star status for the first time. This week, Tyler Betsey, Liam McNeeley, Kon Knueppel and Isaiah Evans all added final stars and were minted as truly elite recruits.
Below, Rivals national analysts Rob Cassidy and Travis Graf explore each of the new five-stars.
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Betsey’s rise began over the summer when he made noise running with the NY Rens on the Nike EYBL circuit and continued into his junior season at St. Thomas More High School. He is capable of shooting the lights out from long-range and comes with serious length, which makes him a matchup problem.
He’s improved as a defender and a shot creator over the last year and has the combination of length and agility to continue to do so. Betsey’s recruitment remains wide open, as he may draw additional college interest this summer, but programs such as Duke, Michigan State and UConn seem to stand at the center of the fight for the time being.
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McNeeley has come a long way as a defender over the last year. So while he’s long been a threat on the offensive end, he’s looked like a complete player this season at Montverde where he’s routinely turned defense into offense while playing against other high-major prospects every night.
McNeeley’s size, versatility and shooting stroke give him sky-high potential, but his work on the defensive end has not gone unnoticed. It feels like an Indiana-Georgia battle for McNeeley but programs such as Oklahoma and Texas are also in play. The Longhorns could become a serious player once they have a permanent coach in place.
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The name of the game in today’s basketball is making shots above all else, and that’s exactly what Knueppel brings to the table. He’s got a very real argument for being the top shooter in the 2024 class. He’s able to shoot off of the catch and off of movement at a high level and his release is consistent with clean mechanics. At 6-foot-6, he possesses quality positional size as well.
Virginia, Marquette and Wisconsin are among the programs in play for the rangy, Midwest-based sharp-shooter.
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Evans’ ability to score in a variety of ways with confidence, coupled with his positional size, are the reasons he finds himself in the top 25. He’s a skilled wing that has put up impressive outings throughout his junior season, having a handful of 40-point games and even a 60-point performance. Evans shot 40-percent from the outside last summer and has shot well from mid-range and from three this season.
Florida State, Kansas, Tennessee and NC State are involved with Evans. Duke is yet to offer but could do so down the road, as the Blue Devils have been in frequent contact.