The world of college basketball stopped for a second as the number one recruit for the class of 2018 made his commitment on "SportsCenter at Night" at 11pm on ESPN. Marvin Bagley III, the point forward from Tempe, Arizona chose to commit to duke University. The big news is that Bagley is going to reclassify to the Class Of 2017. He was the number one recruit in the class of 2018, but he will graduate in August and immediately enroll at Duke to begin his collegiate career. This announcement instantly makes Duke the favorite to win the National Title in 2017.
Duke becomes the favorite to win the title
Coach Krzyzewski went to work after this season looking to replenish a roster that lost 9 players and four major contributors. He now has (with the commitment of Bagley) 4 of the top 8 recruits for the class of 2017. Duke now has the number one point guard Trevon Duval, shooting guard Gary Trent Jr., and the top two power forwards in Bagley and Wendell Carter. We have seen this before from Duke. Three of the last four years Duke has had the number one recruiting class entering the school year. The one year they didn't they were still second behind Kentucky by less than half a point -- by some recruiting measures. For this year, on paper there isn’t a team in the country that is more talented than them.
It is now a matter of execution and health to see how this class performs at the college level. It is not easy to predict how they will do before they ever set foot on campus in Durham, but with all this youth and the experience of Coach K and his oldest player Grayson Allen, there is certainly a well of potential there
Is Bagley the number one pick?
For Marvin Bagley III, the 6' 11'' point forward, there is talk of being the number one pick in the NBA Draft when he leaves Duke.
He is an excellent rebounder and shot blocker, and can also handle and shoot from the outside. He averaged 25.5 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 3.0 blocks per game in the Nike EYBL this past spring/summer. It has been said that Bagley is the best high school recruit to come out since Anthony Davis in 2011. The expectations have always been high for Bagley, and with his commitment to Duke he now has a nation of Blue Devils fans expecting to raise another banner.
It will be exciting to see how this turns out. Highlight Dunk reel Zion Williamson now moves into the number one spot for the class of 2018. He is still uncommitted, and will likely remain as such until the deadline.
