Sports
Rutgers basketball recruiting rankings: Dylan Harper gives Scarlet Knights top-three class – Asbury Park Press
Long considered something of a sleeping giant in the sport — largely due to its major conference affiliation and enviable location in talent-rich New Jersey — Rutgers men’s basketball has started to come awake in recent years.
Under coach Steve Pikiell, the Scarlet Knights have gone 78-54 over the past four-plus seasons and made two NCAA Tournament appearances while narrowly missing out on a third last season. Prior to that stretch, Rutgers had suffered through 13 consecutive losing seasons and hadn’t made the NCAA Tournament since 1991.
That improvement has been tied to success on the recruiting trail and now, with more on-court achievements to sell, the Scarlet Knights are attracting top-tier talent in a way they never had in the game’s modern era.
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On Wednesday, top-five national recruit Dylan Harper from Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey committed to Rutgers, providing yet another talented piece for a breakthrough 2024 class.
Just how good is the Scarlet Knights’ current haul for next year? Here’s a closer look:
With the commitment of Harper, the son of five-time NBA champion Ron Harper and the younger brother of former Rutgers star (and current Toronto Raptors forward) Ron Harper Jr., Rutgers has established itself among the sport’s upper crust in the 2024 recruiting class.
The Scarlet Knights’ five-member recruiting class is now ranked No. 3 nationally by 247Sports’ Composite rankings, behind only perennial powers Duke and Kentucky.
The top five of those recruiting rankings is:
Prior to 2024, Rutgers had just one top-20 recruiting class in the history of 247’s team rankings, which date back to the 1999 class.
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The Scarlet Knights’ current five-player class features two five-star players, with Harper joining previous commit Ace Bailey. Harper and Bailey are two of the top three recruits in the class.
Four of the five players in the class have already signed with the Scarlet Knights, with Harper being the lone exception. He is also the only one of the five who plays high school basketball in New Jersey, meaning the attraction of Rutgers goes beyond the geographic proximity of the school’s campus to top high school players.
Here are the Scarlet Knights’ five recruits in the 2024 class:
