Last year, Tad Boyle and his staff did something unprecedented in a tenure that stretches back to 2010.
When national signing day arrived last November, the CU men’s basketball team inked three prospects to the 2024 class while being certain of only two players leaving the program following the 2022-23 campaign — one-year graduate transfers Jalen Gabbidon and Ethan Wright.
Over-signing is nothing new in major college athletics. It was new to Boyle, however. Yet now, on the cusp of beginning his 14th season at CU, it could be the new norm.
It’s not Boyle’s preferred method of roster-building, but it is a nod to how the college game has changed, as CU once again likely will over-sign when national signing day arrives on Nov. 8.
With the recent addition of a verbal pledge from 6-foot-9 forward Sebastian Rancik, the Buffaloes already have three commits with only two players for certain set to leave the program following the upcoming season — forward Tristan da Silva, who is a near-lock to begin a pro career, and wing Luke O’Brien, who told BuffZone earlier this year he is approaching this season as his last at the collegiate level.
Rancik joins a 2024 CU recruiting class already set to include 6-foot-10 Texan Doryan Onwuchekwa and a homegrown prospect, ThunderRidge combo guard Andrew Crawford. The recruiting team rankings still will fluctuate over the next year, but as it stands CU’s 2024 class is ranked 13th in the nation by 247Sports. And, the Buffs might not be done.
In addition to da Silva and O’Brien, the Buffs have two other seniors in J’Vonne Hadley and Eddie Lampkin Jr. While the personal and team situations might be much different following the season, both are tentatively penciled in to return in 2024-25.
If that comes to fruition, at least one or maybe two players will have to leave the program in order to make room for the 2024 newcomers. That may not be as big a gamble as it sounds. Over 1,400 players hit the transfer portal following last season, and the Buffs have had at least one underclassman leave the program after eight of the past nine seasons. Last year, the Buffs needed one scholarship spot to open up to accommodate the new signees. Instead three left, with Nique Clifford (Colorado State), Lawson Lovering (Utah) and Quincy Allen (James Madison) all exiting via the transfer portal.
It’s also well within the realm of reason that freshman Cody Williams ends up in the 2024 NBA draft.
The latest commitments for the Buffs continue an upswing in recruiting momentum that has brought talent to Boulder but hasn’t yet ended a drought of just one berth in the past six NCAA Tournaments for the Buffs.
CU’s 2021 recruiting class was ranked at the top of the Pac-12 and 13th nationally, but KJ Simpson and Julian Hammond III will be the only players from that class suiting up for the Buffs this season (Allen and Lovering transferred out; Javon Ruffin remains with the program but will miss his second season in three years due to a knee injury). CU stashed last year’s two freshmen on the bench in redshirt seasons, with RJ Smith hoping to crack the guard rotation this season. The addition of Williams, ranked as the No. 4 recruit in the nation per 247Sports, gives the program one of its most highly-touted rookies ever.
Critics of Boyle often point to a veteran coach steadfast in his ways. Yet this year the Buffs are shifting to a five-out approach on offense, and at the Pac-12 media day Boyle said his zone-averse program might utilize zone defenses more frequently. The same can be said on the recruiting trail. Ahead of a season the Buffs are starting just outside the Associated Press top 25, the program is showing an attempt to adapt with the new realities of college basketball.
