The Red Storm may have re-established themselves on the national stage this year, but an almost all-new team will have the responsibility of continuing that progress.
The graduation of 10 seniors from this year’s tournament team has left a huge hole that will be filled by a top-rate recruiting class.
With three top 50 recruits and six in the top 100 – including Queens’ own Maurice Harkless – both ESPN and Rivals rates the Red Storm’s incoming class as the second-best in the nation, behind only Kentucky.
Coach Steve Lavin made a name for himself at UCLA recruiting top players. He twice – 1998 and 2001 – had the top recruiting class in the nation.
Next year St. John’s will return only two players, freshman Dwayne Polee II and sophomore Malik Stith, who received significant minutes during the past season.
“I like the idea, coming from a team that had 10 seniors. I feel I have a lot of experience and with all the big games we had I feel like that experience will carry over into next year and I’ll be able to help the freshmen a lot,” said Polee.
Though a top recruiting class is not a guarantee of success, each ESPN top five recruiting class the past four years has made that year’s NCAA tournament.
“St. John’s is definitely a force to be reckoned with the next couple years,” said Dwight Hardy one of the team’s seniors graduating in May.
