Where is Miami Hurricanes Basketball Ranked Post NBA Draft Deadline
Now that the deadline to enter the NBA Draft has ended, several media outlets have updated their Top 25 for the 2017-18 season. Where do the Hurricanes rank?
Miami enters the 2017-18 season with a highly ranked recruiting class and seven of their top nine scorers from last season returning. Jim Larranaga’s biggest task will be replacing the leadership of the two graduated players, Kamari Murphy and Davon Reed.
They will also miss Murphy’s inside presence. He was their best interior defender, led the team in rebounding and was third in block shots. He finished only two blocks behind the leaders, Dewan Huell and Ebuka Izundu.
The Sporting News, ESPN and CBS Sports all posted rankings since the May 24 deadline to withdraw names from the draft passed. The list did not impact Miami this season but could have a huge bearing on the 2018-19 roster.
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CBS has the Hurricanes ranked Miami highest at 11th with the Sporting News placing them the lowest among the three at 21. ESPN places the Hurricanes 12th. Below is each site’s outlook for the 2017-18 Hurricanes:
CBS:
"11. Miami Hurricanes"
"Coach: Jim Larranaga2016-17 record: 21-12Notable players definitely gone: Davon Reed, Kamari MurphyNotable players also expected to leave: NoneNotable players expected to return: Ja’Quan Newton, Bruce Brown, Anthony Lawrence Jr., Dejan Vasiljevic, Dewan Huell, Ezbuka Izundu, Rodney MillerNotable newcomers: Lonnie Walker, Chris Lykes, Deng Gak, Sam WaardenburgWhy the Hurricanes are here: Six of the top eight scorers are returning — and they’ll be joined by a top-10 recruiting class highlighted by five-star prospect Lonnie Walker. Consequently, the Hurricanes should be even better next season than they were this season."
ESPN went more into depth about what is going to make Miami good next season. They should be more than Walker as CBS highlighted.
"ESPN:12. Miami HurricanesKey losses: Davon Reed, Kamari MurphyKey additions: Lonnie Walker, Chris LykesFirst Way-Too-Early ranking: 21Listen, Miami is coming to compete for the ACC crown. Led by young star Bruce Brown (11.8 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 3.2 APG), the Hurricanes return a group with the personnel to challenge any team in the country. Ja’Quan Newton (13.5 PPG), the top returning scorer on the roster, will anchor one of most promising squads of Jim Larranaga’s tenure at Miami. Five-star guard Lonnie Walker is an acrobatic free spirit on fast breaks and has range. He might not stay in Miami long enough to enjoy the magic of South Beach. Larranaga told the Palm Beach Post this spring he expects Brown and Walker to turn pro next summer after he molds Brown into an “NBA-ready” point guard. Freshman power forward Deng Gak (91st in the 2017 class, per ESPN.com) and sophomore Dewan Huell make up a frontcourt that should help Miami maintain its top-50ish offensive-rebounding rate. Larranaga has the pieces to make noise in the ACC and beyond."
Sporting News acknowledges the losses of Murphy and Reed. Brown and Ja’Quan Newton are going to have to step as leaders next season to take their place in those roles. Newton was suspended for three games for a second straight season.
Newton will be the only Senior on the roster next season that gets playing time. He is going to have to grow up from those suspensions.
Sporting News:
"21. Miami HurricanesWhy they’re here: They’ll miss departing seniors Davon Reed and Kamari Murphy, certainly. But Ja’Quon Newton (13.5 ppg) is back and Bruce Brown’s decision to put off the NBA for another year was huge. Then add in an excellent recruiting class, led by five-star shooting guard Lonnie Walker, and you have a team that will be in the mix for the ACC title next season."
The biggest key for the Hurricanes next season will be replacing Murphy. They should be fine on the perimeter with the returns of Brown, Newton and DJ Vasiljevic and Walker’s entrance.
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Someone is going to have to step up on the frontline. One of Huell, Izundu, Rodney Miller, and incoming freshman Deng Gak and Sam Waardenburg will have to make an impact up front rebounding and on the offensive and defensive ends.