Going into this summer, Hubert Davis and the North Carolina Tar Heels hold the top class in the 2024 recruiting cycle.
With three commitments including two five-star players in the top 15 plus four-star recruit James Brown, the Tar Heels have a solid foundation for this cycle. And that’s even with five-star point guard Elliot Cadeau moving into the 2023 class.
But will UNC hold the top class when it’s all said and done?
Here is what Kyle Boone of CBS Sports had to say about the Tar Heels holding off Duke, Rutgers, and others for the top class:
Duke coach Jon Scheyer has been an ace recruiter dating back to his days as an assistant, but he has not yet sealed the deal with a No. 1 class since taking the reins of the Blue Devils program from Mike Krzyzewski. (Duke did piece together a No. 1 class in 2022 as Scheyer was taking over.) That could change in 2024. Duke already has a top-10 class in the cycle and is a serious contender to land No. 1 overall prospect Dylan Harper, which would put it in the mix for (another) top-five class … and possibly better.
One possible obstacle for Duke: Its Tobacco Road rival, North Carolina. With two top-15 commitments already in tow, the Tar Heels have the current No. 1 class in 2024 and are well-positioned to add to their treasure trove of talent, too.
The way college basketball has changed in recent years, top recruiting classes bring less value than in the past — especially given how impactful transfers have been in the NIL era — but a No. 1 class still carries a ton of weight and cache in the sport.
Duke would have to land Harper and see a bump in other recruits’ ranking to move up to No. 1. At this stage, Rutgers could contend for it if they landed another recruit such as Harper.
UNC’s ranking is safe for now but if they are done adding and player rankings change, there’s at least a chance they fall back to No. 2. But that doesn’t seem likely at this point.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.