Rivals.com expanded its 2016 rankings Friday to include now 60 of the top sophomores in the class. Event though it is still very early on in the process for these recruits, some are well on their way with offers from schools all across the country. As you would expect the Wildcats are definitely already starting to get involved with a number of prospects in the class, and quite a few of them made the list.
Here's a quick look at a few of the notable prospects who made the updated list of 60 prospects.
No. 17 - T.J. Leaf: During his sophomore season the 6-foot-9 prospect really made a name for himself with numerous triple-double efforts and big performances. Sean Miller watched the El Cajon (Calif.) Foothills Christian star in December and Leaf came away with an offer shortly after. The big and versatile forward can really do a variety of things from shooting the ball from deep to making precision passes because of his great court vision.
At this point UCLA is looking like the early leader, but there is a long way to go with the sophomore prospect.
No. 20 - Derryck Thornton, Jr.: If there's a recruit in the class that Arizona has made a huge priority already it's the Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep point guard. Thornton should remain as one of the top point guards in the class as the group continues to move up and there is already plenty to like about the young floor general. As he continues to find the balance between being a productive scorer as well as distributor the 6-foot-2 prospect does a lot of things you simply can't teach.
Thornton can really command a team and he can really make things happen from a point guard perspective in getting his teammates the ball in good spots. Overall the Wildcats remain in a good spot with Thornton, who is still going to take his time with a decision.
No. 22 - MJ Cage: Another prospect who made a nice jump in his sophomore season is the Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei big man, who really had himself a solid year with the Monarchs. While future Wildcat Stanley Johnson received much of the spotlight, Cage was a double-double machine all year for his team and came up big in many different situations. The 6-foot-9 power forward prospect has really grown into his frame this year, and his athleticism really sets him apart from other bigs in the group.
He can affect the game on both sides of the floor, and his offensive game in continually improving as he matures. Arizona is just one of the big schools involved with the Southern California prospect.
No. 39 - Vance Jackson: The Wildcats got involved early on with the Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco recruit. At 6-foot-7 with a nice ability to shoot the ball from deep, Jackson presents some matchup problems and some flexibility to his coaches to use him in a variety of ways. Jackson can really rebound the ball when he needs to and he can rack points up in a hurry as well. Right now the local school - UCLA - is looking like it could end up being the school to beat for Jackson, but like the rest of the prospects there is a long way to go.
Updated Top 60 2016 rankings
Here's a quick look at a few of the notable prospects who made the updated list of 60 prospects.
No. 17 - T.J. Leaf: During his sophomore season the 6-foot-9 prospect really made a name for himself with numerous triple-double efforts and big performances. Sean Miller watched the El Cajon (Calif.) Foothills Christian star in December and Leaf came away with an offer shortly after. The big and versatile forward can really do a variety of things from shooting the ball from deep to making precision passes because of his great court vision.
At this point UCLA is looking like the early leader, but there is a long way to go with the sophomore prospect.
No. 20 - Derryck Thornton, Jr.: If there's a recruit in the class that Arizona has made a huge priority already it's the Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep point guard. Thornton should remain as one of the top point guards in the class as the group continues to move up and there is already plenty to like about the young floor general. As he continues to find the balance between being a productive scorer as well as distributor the 6-foot-2 prospect does a lot of things you simply can't teach.
Thornton can really command a team and he can really make things happen from a point guard perspective in getting his teammates the ball in good spots. Overall the Wildcats remain in a good spot with Thornton, who is still going to take his time with a decision.
No. 22 - MJ Cage: Another prospect who made a nice jump in his sophomore season is the Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei big man, who really had himself a solid year with the Monarchs. While future Wildcat Stanley Johnson received much of the spotlight, Cage was a double-double machine all year for his team and came up big in many different situations. The 6-foot-9 power forward prospect has really grown into his frame this year, and his athleticism really sets him apart from other bigs in the group.
He can affect the game on both sides of the floor, and his offensive game in continually improving as he matures. Arizona is just one of the big schools involved with the Southern California prospect.
No. 39 - Vance Jackson: The Wildcats got involved early on with the Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco recruit. At 6-foot-7 with a nice ability to shoot the ball from deep, Jackson presents some matchup problems and some flexibility to his coaches to use him in a variety of ways. Jackson can really rebound the ball when he needs to and he can rack points up in a hurry as well. Right now the local school - UCLA - is looking like it could end up being the school to beat for Jackson, but like the rest of the prospects there is a long way to go.
Updated Top 60 2016 rankings
