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Debut of Elite 8 Recruiting Rankings

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Today we are debuting a new feature on Friarbasketball.com, “Elite 8 Recruiting Rankings.” Every week Craig Leighton and Kevin Farrahar will post their PC-specific recruiting power rankings, listing their top eight Friar targets. Unlike national rankings, we will rank players based on not only upside, but the fit at Providence, the need, and the likelihood of these prospects ending up at PC.

We had a similar feature on this site in 2010, and we’re excited to bring it back today. This is not meant to be an all-inclusive listing of Providence recruits.

Kevin Farrahar’s Elite 8 for May 8, 2014:

1. Donovan Mitchell, Brewster Academy, class of 2015: Ed Cooley has been enamored with the 6’3 shooting guard out of Connecticut since Mitchell’s freshman year. Questions about his outside shot and his true position may have kept Mitchell out of a top 75 spot nationally, but he’s tops here. Mitchell is answering those questions about his outside shooting early in the AAU season.

2. Braxton Blackwell, Christ Presbyterian Academy, class of 2016: Jalen Lindsey’s former teammate has the makings of a superstar. The 6’8 forward is a top 25 prospect in most publications and could be a game changer if he follows in Lindsey’s footsteps. PC is very involved here.

3. Larry Austin, Lanphier High School, class of 2014: The one-time Tennessee commit would be a late coup. Steady lead guard whose game took off after a down junior season. “Larry’s junior year was sort of up and down. There was a coaching change and he was really worried about which school he would be going to, as well as what people were saying about him. I thought that really affected his game because he wasn’t playing loose and free and his numbers showed it,” his high school coach told our Craig Belhumeur earlier this week.

4. Jermaine Samuels, Rivers School, class of 2017: Not familiar with Samuels yet? You will be. The 6’5 small forward has all the makings of a megastar and Providence showed early interest. Can PC’s luck with Expressions recruits change after missing on Abu and Terrell? Amazing freshman talent.

5. Jalen Adams, Cushing Academy, class of 2015: Adams’ coach Barry Connors said it’s looking like a two team race between Connecticut and Kansas, but recruiting is fluid (what happens if Ollie ends up in LA?). PC’s chances appear to have faded over the past year, but sheer talent keeps him on. Plus, he continues to list the Friars when asked. Most clutch New England player I’ve seen since Shabazz.

6. Jarred Reuter, Brewster Academy, class of 2015: Brewster head coach Jason Smith told me in February that Providence was one of a handful of schools pursuing Reuter, but his recruitment is growing with Pittsburgh most recently offering. Tough to gauge PC’s interest here.

7. Miles Bridges, Huntington Prep, class of 2016: Cooley is aiming high in 2016. Bridges, a top 25 small forward, recently stated that Providence was among a small group of schools recruiting him the hardest. PC offered in September and will have to fight off the likes of Michigan and Michigan State for this Midwest prospect.

8. Curtis Cobb, Wilbraham & Monson, class of 2015: Just an effective scorer out of Fall River who should see his stock rise with Mass Rivals this summer. He’s off to a hot start and has recently heard from much of the Big East — St. John’s, Butler and Creighton — over the past week. 6’4 and can put the ball in the basket in a variety of ways. Not sure how heavily PC is interested, but the thought here is he’ll be very solid.

 

Craig Leighton’s Elite 8 for May 8, 2014:

1. Donovan Mitchell, Brewster Academy class of 2015: Donovan is an incredible athlete and is great in the open court and driving to the basket. The 6’3 shooting guard’s outside shot is streaky right now and needs work, but he does have nice form. Mitchell is ranked in the top 100 in all of the recruiting services and is probably the Friars number one recruiting target in the class of 2015.

2. Larry Austin, Lamphier High School, class of 2014: Larry is a 6’1 point guard who recently got released from his letter of intent to the University of Tennessee. He is a classic point guard who has all the skills and is probably the Friars top  target in the 2014 class.

3. Braxton Blackwell, Christ Presbyterian Academy, class of 2016: When Ed Cooley was down in Tennessee recruiting Jalen Lindsey a couple of years ago one of Lindsey’s high school teammates immediately caught his eye. He offered Braxton Blackwell a scholarship on the spot and has been recruiting him hard ever since. At 6’8 Blackwell is a true playmaker at the small forward position who possesses all the tools. He could wind up a guard in college.

4. Jalen Adams, Cushing Academy, class of 2015: Jalen may be the top prep school player in New England for the 2015 class and is the highest rated point guard that the Friars are recruiting. A consensus top 50 player, Adams may be a tough get as several big time programs have been after him lately, especially Kansas and Connecticut.

5. Jarred Reuter, Brewster Academy, class of 2015: Jarred is the bruising type of interior player that PC really needs going forward as a complement to Paschal Chukwu. A very good passer for a big man, Jarred has a real nose for the ball and is an absolute beast underneath, possessing some great interior moves. He also has a high basketball IQ, and has the heart of a warrior.

6. Mamadou Diarra, Putnam Science Academy, class of 2015: Mamadou may be a real sleeper in recruiting circles. A 6’9 power forward with explosive athletic ability, Mamadou has so far had limited exposure nationally. Diarra may wind up reclassifying to the 2016 class for a post grad year depending on how he progresses. PC has been over to Putnam Science to watch him and he has been to PC on an unofficial visit. Friar fans should definitely keep tabs on Mamadou going forward.

7. Jermaine Samuels Rivers School, class of 2017: Jermaine Samuels may very well wind up being one of the top players nationally in the class of 2017. When Friarbasketball.com’s Kevin Farrahar caught him earlier this year he utterly dominated a very good Vermont Academy team. Jermaine has already been to PC a couple of times and you can bet the Friar staff will be keeping very close tabs on him for the next couple of years.

8. Montaque Gil-Caesar, Huntington Prep, class of 2015: A consensus top 30 player in the 2015 class, Gil-Caesar was teammates this past season with future Friar Jalen Lindsey. The Friar staff has been recruiting Montaque at the same time they were watching Lindsey play at Huntington Prep. Gil-Caesar is an incredible athlete and driver to the basket who will need to improve the streakiness his outside shot at the next level.

Five Others to Keep an Eye On:

Tomas Murphy, Prout High School, class of 2017

Aaron Falzon, Northfield Mount Hermon, class of 2015

Naadir Tharpe, Kansas University, Transfer (potentially eligible 2014)

Josh Langford, Madison Academy, class of 2016

Terrell Brown, St. Andrew’s Academy, class of 2016

Featured Recruit of the Week: Larry Austin:

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