The first day of college basketball's week-long Early Signing Period for the 2024 recruiting class is Wednesday, setting up a stressful seven days for college coaches across America looking to solidify their respective rosters for the 2024-25 season and beyond.
Most of the top players in the country have already pledged their commitment to a particular school, but nothing is official until their signature hits the dotted line. Cooper Flagg, who ranks No. 1 overall recruit in the 2024 recruiting cycle, recently committed to Duke. Flagg is expected to make his status as a Blue Devil official by signing his National Letter of Intent in the coming days.
Eight of the top 20 players in the 247Sports 2024 Player Rankings remain uncommitted heading into the signing period. The headliner from the group is five-star combo guard Dylan Harper, who is mulling offers from Duke, Indiana, Auburn, Kansas and Rutgers. While the Scarlett Knights appear to be the favorite, nothing is official until he signs. Harper could potentially give Rutgers its best recruiting class in school history if he takes his talents to Piscataway, New Jersey.
Here are five storylines to keep an eye on with the early signing period on the horizon.
Can Duke's 2024 class become the best ever?
The Blue Devils hold the two best recruiting classes (2018 and 2022) in the 247Sports era. The 2024 class has a chance to be better than both of them. It all starts with Flagg, who helped Duke jump Missouri for the No. 1 spot in the 247Sports team rankings. Duke just landed four-star center Patrick Ngongba last weekend and already had commitments from five-star forward Isaiah Evans, five-star forward Kon Knueppel and four-star forward Darren Harris.
If Duke is able to land one more high-level recruit, they're almost guaranteed to finish with the highest rated recruiting class of all-time. The Blue Devils are currently in the mix for Harper and five-star forward VJ Edgecombe. While Harper appears to be more of a long shot, they're right in the mix of a recruiting battle with St. John's to land Edgecombe.
Harper is the next domino to fall
Harper is the lone player in the 2024 cycle (outside of Flagg) that can change the complexion of the recruiting cycle. His decision will create a massive ripple effect, especially if he picks Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights currently sit at No. 8 in the 247Sports team rankings and can jump all the way to the No. 2 spot behind Duke if they land the No. 2 overall player in the cycle.
Rutgers is putting together its best recruiting class in school history under coach Steve Pikiell and already have a commitment from five-star forward Ace Bailey. Landing two of the top three players in the class would be unprecedented territory for a Rutgers program that hasn't had much recruiting success in the modern era.
Will Missouri hold the No. 2 spot?
When you think of programs that may sit at the top of the recruiting rankings on a given year, your first thought may be traditional blue-blood programs such as Duke, Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina. Yes, Duke has the No. 1 class and it will be the heavy favorite to maintain that ranking, but Missouri is right there in the mix to finish with the No. 2 class.
The Tigers held the top spot up until last week when Duke landed Flagg and Ngongba. With five top-100 players committed and Missouri in the mix for five-star center Jayden Quaintance, coach Dennis Gates has his program in prime position heading into the early signing period.
What program in Texas will land Tre Johnson?
How about an in-state recruiting battle for drama? Johnson, who ranks as the No. 5 overall player in his class and the top-ranked player from the state of Texas is down to two schools. Johnson will decide between the flagship university in the state and the Baylor Bears.
Heading into the signing period, Johnson's Crystal Ball from 247Sports predicts he'll commit to Baylor, but Texas appears to still be in the mix to land the No. 1 shooting guard from the 2024 cycle. Johnson has ties to both programs. His father, Richard Johnson Jr., played for Baylor and one of the coaches on the staff at the time was ... you guessed it, Texas coach Rodney Terry. No pressure, kid.
Minimal flipping excepted
The signing period always offers fireworks because flipping has become a common practice in the recruiting world. Because of that, coaches can't relax until their respective recruit(s) sign. There are a handful of names that could be "flip" candidates, but the drama levels appear to be low heading into a critical week on the college basketball calendar. There were rumblings that Evans, who committed to Duke this past spring, could be a candidate to change his mind. He put those rumors to rest on his social media leading up to the signing period.
I ain’t goin no where
— Isaiah Evans (@IsaiahEvans26) November 5, 2023
Another player that could be a potential candidate to switch his commitment is Ian Jackson. The five-star guard committed to North Carolina in January and there were rumors he could flip his commitment to St. John's in large part due to the hiring of legendary coach Rick Pitino. Jackson recently took another visit to North Carolina, so it appears that Hubert Davis and his staff can breathe a sigh of relief for now.
Five-star center Derik Queen is another top prospect that is expected to announce his commitment sometime during the early signing period. The No. 12 overall player in the cycle is mulling between Houston, Indiana, Maryland and Kansas. He currently holds a crystal ball projection to Maryland, which would be a massive win for Kevin Willard and his staff after signing the No. 20 overall class last year.
