Xavier using high school recruiting to sustain success

Yesterday, Xavier gained a significant commitment when three-star guard Desmond Claude of Putnam (Conn.) Science Academy. Claude’s commitment gives the Musketeers their third pledge of the class and may allow head coach Travis Steele not to miss a beat moving forward.

Xavier is currently ranked No. 20 in the A.P. top 25. Their roster is comprised mainly of older, more experienced players. Six are juniors or seniors of their eight-man rotation – players who play 19 or more minutes per game. This program needed a serious infusion of young talent. 

With this 2022 class, the staff emphasized perimeter firepower. Claude is the third such guard/wing they brought in. He joins the four-star pair of Kam Craft of Atlanta (Ga.) TSF Academy and Tyrell Ward of Hyattsville (Md.) Dematha Catholic. 

Desmond Claude

Claude was one of the more interesting available prospects. The 6-foot-3 guard had a big summer playing with The Expression program on Nike’s 17u EYBL circuit. Programs started to look at him as a bonafide high major guard. Offers from Kansas, Wake Forest, Louisville, Butler, Notre Dame, California, and Xavier, among others, came across for him. 

Claude is the perfect compliment to Ward and Craft. And looking at the roster makeup, we know Xavier will lose two of its top four scorers, both guards, in Nate Johnson and Paul Scruggs. Johnson is in his sixth year, and Scruggs in his fifth; their eligibility will be exhausted. 

The plan is currently for listed seniors Ben Stanley and Adam Kunkel to return, taking their available COVID years. But in the fickle landscape of college basketball today, you can never be sure.

Why is this class so important for Xavier?

Ward, Craft, and Claude bring talent into the Cincinnati-based school, for starters. Three players ranked among the top 150 in the country in positions of need—players who are in the clear upswing of their careers, talent-wise. 

Secondly, the fit of the group, together. Claude is a perfect compliment to Craft and Ward. Ward is a downhill slasher, a lengthy and explosive athlete becoming a shot-maker. Craft is a, for lack of a better term, crafty scorer from the shooting guard position. Excellent in the mid-range, Craft can get going and, in the blink of an eye, have 30. 

Claude is the setup piece. He is the guard who takes care of possessions and does not turn it over. He is the one to who you can swing it back around and knock down the open look. Claude has good positional size and gives good effort both rebounding and on defense. If Ward and Craft are the glitter, Claude is the glue holding them to the paper. 

Travis Steele is in the middle of his best season yet at Xavier. With a roster that is finally getting to be fully healthy, the expectations are building. Returning are starters Jack Nunge, Zach Freemantle, and Colby Jones, the elder statesmen. With Desmond Claude, this 2022 class for Xavier will bring some young talent that should keep the train running for the program.

Who is next

While Claude may not have made significant headlines, there is no question he fits squarely in with the future success of the Xavier program. 

There are still some 2022 prospects, ranked outside of the top 100, who are available. These are the players who may not win the press conference on signing day but could squarely fit in with the future success of the high major program that gets them. 

Ezra Ausar

Ausar is a uniquely gifted 6-foot-8 and 240 pound forward prospect. Ausar is an aggressive defender, switchable from the wing to the block. He can move his feet at the top of the press and has nice weakside shot-blocking talent. The Charlotte (N.C.) Liberty Heights forward is an excellent rebounder on both ends. Offensively, Ausar is comfortable initiating, with great vision and the ability to drag out opposing bigs and get into the paint to make a play. He finishes well close to the basket.

Current recruitment: Offers from Texas A&M and Wichita State

Darren Buchanan

Buchannan is a power wing type out of Washington (D.C.) Woodrow Wilson High. He is comfortable on the ball, with two or three dribbles from the wing position. The 6-foot-7 wing can also switch up to the four position and guard on the block. He is very strong and loves to do the dirty work, the little things that make good programs great. 

Current recruitment: Offers from Virginia Tech, George Mason, George Washington, etc…

Jerome Beya

Beya transferred this year to Bel Aire (Kan.) Sunrise Christian, and things we a little quiet for him. While spending his previous two seasons at Teays Valley (W.V.) Christian, Beya established himself as one of the premier rim protectors in the country. With great length, natural timing, and explosive pop, Beya is a force around the basket. Offensively, the 6-foot-9 center is best in the dunker spots or rim running. He is excellent at running the floor in transition. 

Current recruitment: At one time, he had 15+ offers from Illinois, Xavier, Oregon, NC State, West Virginia, St. John’s, etc…