Looking Back: The 2003 Recruiting Class

By Rob DausterJul 3, 2013, 9:00 AM EDT

Next week, the first session of July’s live recruiting period will begin, and high school hoopers around the country will take their talents to tournaments across the country, looking to impress coaches enough to earn a spot on a team at some level.

Those that are good enough will be playing for a scholarship. The best of the best will have a spot in all of the top 100 recruiting rankings on the line.

Over the course of this week, we will be looking back at the RSCI — a composite index for top 100 lists — to reinforce a point: recruiting rankings are not a guarantee. Top ten recruits flame out and unranked players make the NBA. The only thing that is a given is that hard work will be talent when talent doesn’t work hard.

Keep that in mind while tracking where a kid is ranked and who is recruiting him.

We’ll be looking at the Class of 1999-2008, the last 10 classes that have finished the five years they are allowed to use their four seasons of eligibility.

To read through the rest of our Looking Back posts, click here.

THE TOP 20

1. LeBron James: Duh.

2. Luol Deng: The Dengs are Sudanese basketball royalty, and Luol is the best of the bunch. After one season at Duke where he averaged 15.1 points and helped Duke to the Final Four, Deng was the seventh pick in the 2004 Draft. He’s spent his entire career in Chicago, making the all-star game each of the past two seasons.

3. Shannon Brown: Brown ended up enrolling at Michigan State, where he played for three seasons. After a junior year where he averaged 17.2 points, Brown entered the draft and went 25th to Cleveland. In the NBA, Brown bounced around for a couple of seasons before breaking out with the Lakers in the 2009 playoffs. He’s been a double-figure scorer with the Lakers and the Suns since then.

4. Ndudi Ebi: Ebi was one of the guys that ushered in the one-and-done era. He skipped college and went pro, getting picked 26th by Minnesota in the 2003 Draft. He played 19 games in two seasons, spent a year in the D-League and has been overseas ever since.

5. Kendrick Perkins: Perkins was supposed to be a package deal to Memphis with high school teammate Keena Young, but he went pro instead, getting picked 27th by the Grizzlies in 2003. Perkins has carved out a lucrative career as a paint enforcer without a postgame. He won a ring with Boston in 2008 and is now playing with Kevin Durant in Oklahoma City.

6. Chris Paul: Paul was an all-american at Wake Forest and has gone on to be one of the best point guards in the NBA.

7. Brian Butch: Butch redshirted his first season, but never quite developed into the player he was expected to be. He eventually would up averaging 12.4 points and 6.6 boards as a senior, but went undrafted. He’s been with the same D-League team since 2009.

7. David Padgett: Padgett spent his freshman season at Kansas before transferring to Louisville. With the Cardinals, Padgett never put up huge numbers, but he developed into arguably the Cardinals most important piece. He went undrafted and went into coaching after two years of pro ball. He’s currently on staff at IUPUI.

9. Leon Powe: Powe overcame a tough upbringing to make it to Cal, where he played two seasons, which sandwiched a year he took off because of a knee injury. Powe was the 49th pick in the 2006 Draft and had a successful start to his career in Boston, but blew out his knee again after the 2009 season. He’s been out of the league since 2011.

10. Kris Humphries: I could try to tell you Humphries was the 14th pick in the 2004 Draft after one season at Minnesota, and that he became a consistent double-double threat with the Nets the last could of years, but we all know that he’s the dude that Kanye stole Kim from.

11. Von Wafer: After two seasons at Florida State, Wafer has been an NBA journeyman since getting picked 39th in the 2005 Draft. He’s played for seven NBA teams and a trio of teams abroad.

12. Brandon Bass: Bass played two seasons at LSU before going pro, averaging 17.3 points and 9.1 boards as a sophomore. He was the 33rd pick in the 2005 Draft, and has carved out a career for himself as a hard-working, scrappy power forward. He’s played for Dallas, Orlando and, most recently, Boston.

13. Olu Famutimi: Famutimi played for two seasons at Arkansas before questionably entering the 2005 NBA Draft. He wasn’t picked, and has played in Turkey, France and Germany since.

14. J.R. Giddens: Giddens began his career at Kansas, but a stabbing incident forced a transfer to New Mexico after two seasons with the Jayhawks. He was eventually picked with the last pick in the first round of the 2008 NBA Draft, but lasted just two seasons in the NBA.

14. Linas Kleiza: The native of Lithuania played at Missouri and entered the draft after two seasons. He went 27th, and played well earlier in his career with Denver. After one season in Greece, he came back and has been with Toronto since then.

14. Travis Outlaw: Outlaw never went to college, but he’s managed to carve out a nice career for himself since being the 23rd pick in the 2003 Draft. He played with Portland until 2010, which included a couple of big seasons in 2007-2008 and 2008-2009. He’s played with the Clippers, Nets and Kings since then.

17. Mike Jones: Jones had a decent four-year career at Maryland. He never quite lived up to his potential, but he averaged 13.5 points as a senior. He never played in the NBA.

18. Charlie Villanueva: Villanueva played two seasons at UConn, which included a national title in 2004, before he went pro. He was the seventh pick in the 2005 Draft and had one really good season in Milwaukee that earned him a bigger contract with Detroit. He’s been in the league since, but hasn’t done much worth mentioning.

19. Trevor Ariza: Ariza played one season at UCLA before going pro. He was the 43rd pick, but has managed to put together a solid NBA career. His best season came in 2009-2010, when he averaged 14.9 points with Houston.

20. James Lang: Lang never went to college and was the 48th pick of the 2003 Draft. He played all of 11 games in the NBA, and bounced around the D-League and NBA training camp roster before suffering a stroke in 2009 that left him partially paralyzed.

OTHER NOTABLE PLAYERS

25. Mustafa Shakur
29. Chris Taft
30. Jackie Butler
32. Aaron Brooks
39. Ronnie Brewer
39. Gary Forbes
41. Marcus Williams
42. Terrence Roberts
43. Chris Richard
45. Will Sheridan
52. Courtney Sims
54. Cartier Martin
64. Dorell Wright
66. Paul Millsap
79. PJ Tucker
80. Renaldo Balkman
95. Josh Boone
UR: Quincy Douby
UR: Nick Fazekas
UR: Aaron Gray
UR: Dominic McGuire
UR: Adam Morrison
UR: Joakim Noah
UR: Anthony Tolliver

You can find Rob on twitter @RobDauster.

Arizona State extends Hurley through 2025-26 season

Associated PressMar 22, 2023, 12:02 AM EDT

Getty Images

TEMPE, Ariz. – Arizona State has agreed to a contract extension with men’s basketball coach Bobby Hurley that runs through the 2025-26 season.

The deal announced on Tuesday is subject to approval by the Arizona Board of Regents. Hurley’s previous contract was set to expire after next season.

“Coach Hurley has made our program relevant nationally with many significant wins and an exciting style, along with a firm commitment to the academic success of our student-athletes,” Arizona State athletic director Ray Anderson said in a statement. “He has made it clear to us that he wants to be here and we have done likewise with him. We share a strong confidence in the present and future state of Sun Devil men’s basketball.”

Hurley led the Sun Devils to 23 wins this season and their third trip to the NCAA Tournament the last five times it has been played. Arizona State beat Nevada in the First Four before losing to Texas Christian on a last-second shot last Friday.

The Sun Devils have won at least 20 games four of the past six seasons. They are 141-113 in eight seasons under Hurley.

Campbell new TCU women’s coach after taking Sac St to NCAA

Associated PressMar 22, 2023, 12:00 AM EDT

Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports

FORT WORTH, Texas – Mark Campbell was hired as TCU’s women’s basketball coach Tuesday after the former Oregon assistant took Sacramento State to its first NCAA Tournament in an impressive and quick turnaround.

Sacramento State was coming off a 3-22 season when Campbell was hired two years ago. The Hornets won 14 games in Campbell’s first season, and then made another 11-win improvement this season while finishing 25-8 with Big Sky regular-season and tournament championships.

During his seven seasons on Oregon’s staff before that, the Ducks had some of the nation’s top recruiting classes. That included Campbell recruiting Sabrina Ionescu, who became the AP player of the year in 2020 before she was the first overall pick in the WNBA draft.

Campbell replaces Raegan Pebley, who stepped down after nine seasons as TCU’s coach with a 141-138 record. The Horned Frogs were 8-23 this season, including 1-17 in Big 12 play during the regular season.

TCU athletic director Jeremiah Donati described Campbell as an elite recruiter and program builder.

“Similar to his success at Sacramento State, he was instrumental in Oregon quickly becoming one of the nation’s most successful programs, reaching their first NCAA Elite Eight and then Final Four,” Donati said.

The Frogs haven’t been to the NCAA Tournament since 2010. That was their ninth NCAA appearance, all coming in a 10-season span without making it past the second round.

Boston College extends Earl Grant through 2028-29 season

Associated PressMar 21, 2023, 11:58 PM EDT

Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

BOSTON – Boston College coach Earl Grant has agreed to a two-year extension that will keep him under contract through the 2028-29 season.

Grant took over as Eagles coach prior to the 2021-22 season and finished 13-20. Boston College went 16-17 this past season, but it had three wins over nationally ranked teams for the first time in 14 years.

“My family and I have enjoyed being a part of this amazing community,” Grant said in a statement. “Boston is a great city and we are glad to call it our home. I am thankful for the efforts of my staff to help move the program forward.”

The Eagles finished 9-11 in Atlantic Coast Conference play, their most wins in the league play since 2010-11. Quinten Post also became the first Boston College player to be named Most Improved Player.

In announcing the extension, athletic director Blake James expressed optimism about the direction of the program.

“Earl has done an outstanding job leading our men’s basketball program over the last two seasons and we are looking forward to him doing so for many years to come,” James said.

Pitino returns to big stage at St. John’s: ‘I’ve earned it’

Associated PressMar 21, 2023, 11:57 PM EDT

Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

NEW YORK – The video banner above the entrance to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday read: “Welcome Rick Pitino.”

More like welcome back for the new St. John’s coach.

Back to The Garden, where he once coached the Knicks.

Back to the Big East, the conference that launched his stardom and where he won his last NCAA championship.

Back to big-time college basketball after a series of scandals made it seem as if that part of his career was over.

“So, when I went to Iona, I said that Iona was going to be my last job,” Pitino said at his introductory news conference at MSG. “And the reason I said that is who’s going to hire a 70-year-old ? No matter how much I think I’m Peter Pan, who’s going hire a 70-year-old?”

St. John’s gave the Hall of Famer a six-year contract to turn back the clock on a program that once stole New York City tabloid headlines away from the Knicks in the 1980s under coach Lou Carnesecca but has been mired in mediocrity for more than two decades.

The Red Storm once played most of their biggest home games at The Garden. Pitino said the goal is to have all their Big East games played there going forward.

“Lou built a legendary program. Legendary,” Pitino said. “I’m all in with everything that St. John stands for. I’m excited about it. I can’t wait to get started.

“And it’s going to start with a culture of work.”

Pitino, who was born in New York City and grew up on Long Island, has won 832 games in 34 full seasons as a college head coach, including NCAA championships at Kentucky in 1996 and Louisville in 2013.

The title at Louisville was vacated for NCAA violations, and another NCAA case related to the FBI’s investigation into corruption in college basketball recruiting led to Pitino being fired by Louisville in 2017.

The final ruling from the NCAA’s outside enforcement arm on the FBI case came down in November and exonerated Pitino.

There was also a criminal extortion case in which Pitino was the victim during his time at Louisville that revealed personal indiscretions.

“Well, it doesn’t matter what you believe, what you don’t believe,” Pitino said. “The one thing all my players have said, because they all wrote letters for me: I’ve never cheated the game. I never gave a player anything that he didn’t deserve in life.”

St. John’s president, the Rev. Brian Shanley, said the decision to hire Pitino was his call.

“Yeah, sure, there’s some reputational risk because of things that have happened before, but I think Rick is at a point in his life where he’s learned from things that have happened in the past,” Shanley told The Associated Press. “I think he’d be the first one to tell you he’s done things that he regrets. Who doesn’t when you get to be that age? I know I have. I’m a believer in forgiveness and new beginnings as a priest, and I think Rick’s going to do a great job for St. John’s.”

Carnesecca, 98 and getting around with the help of a walker these days, sat in the front row of Pitino’s news conference.

“I think it’s a home run with the bases loaded,” Carnesecca said.

Carnesecca was one of the Big East’s brightest coaching stars, along with Georgetown’s John Thompson and Villanova’s Rollie Massimino, when Pitino became Providence head coach in 1985 at the age of 32.

Thirty-eight years later, Pitino’s Providence ties helped him land at St. John’s after three seasons at Iona, a small Catholic school in New Rochelle, just north of New York City.

Shanley previously was the president of Providence. He helped turn around a lagging men’s basketball program by hiring coach Ed Cooley and investing in facilities upgrades.

“If I wasn’t a Providence Friar, he would have never even considered it,” Pitino said.

Shanley attempted to lure Pitino away from Louisville and back to Providence years ago, but he didn’t know much about the coach personally back then. He said he talked to a lot of people about Pitino this time around.

“I’d say my behind-the-scenes wisdom person was Mike Tranghese, the former commissioner of the Big East,” Shanley said. “He got me Ed Cooley last time, and I think we came out pretty well this time, too.”

Cooley was hired by Georgetown on Monday.

Pitino said he’s bringing his entire staff with him from Iona, which announced the hiring of Fairleigh Dickinson coach Tobin Anderson to replace Pitino earlier in the day.

Pitino will try to become the first coach to take six different schools to the NCAA Tournament as he gets one more shot on the big stage.

“I deserve it,” he said, “because I’ve earned it.”

Tobin Anderson leaving FDU to replace Rick Pitino at Iona

Associated PressMar 21, 2023, 2:43 PM EDT

Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — Tobin Anderson is leaving NCAA Cinderella Fairleigh Dickinson after one fairy-tale season and replacing Rick Pitino at Iona.

Iona athletic director Matt Glovaski announced the hiring a day after Pitino left to take the job at St. John’s of the Big East Conference.

Anderson led the No. 16 seed Knights to a win over No. 1 Purdue in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament last week, only the second time a No. 16 seed has knocked off a top-seeded team. UMBC beat No. 1 Virginia in 2018.

“Iona University represents everything my family and I were looking for in a school, a basketball program and a campus atmosphere,” Anderson said in a statement. “Our goal is to build upon the tremendous tradition of Iona basketball and elevate the program to greater heights.”

Iona of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference was knocked out of this year’s tournament by UConn on Friday.

“We have long known him to be a fantastic coach and an even better person,” Glovaski said. “Now, with his team’s impressive run in the NCAA Tournament, everyone paying attention to March Madness also knows this. We’re delighted that he will be at the helm of our men’s basketball program.”

Anderson led FDU to a 21-16 overall record and 10-6 in Northeast Conference play. The Knights lost to Merrimack in the conference title game but got the NCAA berth because Merrimack was ineligible to compete as a transitioning school from Division II.

FDU, one of the shorter teams in the 68-team field, beat Texas Southern in a First Four game and followed that with the upset over Purdue. Florida Atlantic knocked the Knights out of the tournament on Sunday.

FDU had a 4-22 record in 2021-22. Anderson was hired after running the program at St. Thomas Aquinas, located less than 25 miles (40 km) from Iona’s campus. In nine seasons, he turned the team into a perennial Top 25 program in Division II after inheriting a team that won just five games prior to his hire.

Anderson got his first taste of Division I coaching, serving as an assistant at Siena for two seasons from 2011–2013. Before his time at Siena, Anderson was a head coach at the Division III level at Hamilton College and Clarkson University in upstate New York. He worked as an assistant at Clarkson and Le Moyne College.

Anderson graduated from Wesleyan University in 1995.