In Reply to: Why should they be included? There was a severe shortage posted by LakerFanForLebronNotKobe on April 21, 2026 at 10:18:00
Why should we be limited to "local" players? Every successful school recruits from all over the country and all over the world, too.
But first of all, Cronin has gotten the #1 or #2 player in California three times in six years:
2021 #1 Peyton Watson
2022 #1 Amari Bailey
2024 #2 Trent Perry
This has been an atypical year for SoCal talent. Other than Braden Burries, who were the best from here during Cronin's tenure? It certainly hasn't been greater source of talent than any other area.
NIL has become the major factor in recruiting. When have any of the top recruits ever gone to schools like BYU and Missouri in past years?
Are 5-stars really worth it? Almost all leave after a year and disrupt the continuity in the program. The 2025 crop were especially bad investments:
There were 20 five stars in the 2024 class according to the 247 rankings.
Duke got four of them and made the Final Four. Unrealistic for any other school
Rutgers got two of them and didn't even make the tournament.
North Carolina got two of them, barely made the tournament and had to play in the first four and then lost in the first round.
Of the other 12:
1 made the Elite Eight
2 made the Sweet 16
3 lost in the 2nd round
2 lost in the 1st round
1 lost in the First Four
3 didn't make the tournament
Of the 20, 14 entered the draft, 4 transferred to another school and only 2 remained with the team that signed them.
Every Final Four team this past season built their team with transfers and/or foreign players: Michigan (5 starters), Illinois (4 starters), Arizona (3 starters), UConn (2 starters).
Your contention that Cronin can't recruit because he doesn't get local players or 5-stars out of high school is not a very valid argument.