Busting Brackets
Fansided

NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Analyzing 2020 G DJ Steward’s final 8 teams

By Matthew Travis

ATLANTA, GA - MARCH 24: A view of an NCAA sign and towel prior to the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament South Regional between the Kansas State Wildcats and the Loyola Ramblers at Philips Arena on March 24, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - MARCH 24: A view of an NCAA sign and towel prior to the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament South Regional between the Kansas State Wildcats and the Loyola Ramblers at Philips Arena on March 24, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 5
Next
BLOOMINGTON, IN – JANUARY 15: A Indiana Hoosiers cheerleader performs during the game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Assembly Hall on January 15, 2017 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, IN – JANUARY 15: A Indiana Hoosiers cheerleader performs during the game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Assembly Hall on January 15, 2017 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

Coming in at five and six we have Indiana and Iowa State.

Next on DJ Steward’s list of schools we have Iowa State University and Indiana University. These are two teams that have both had a moderate amount of success lately, but they have both also failed to get over the hump of being a team that’s season is made or broken if they make or miss the tournament, vs a team whose season is made or broken by a deep tournament run.

Iowa State has been a team that hasn’t necessarily been a destination for top recruits as of late. The Cyclones failed to get a single recruit in ESPN’s Top-100 in the Class of 2019 and they have had a total of four since the Class of 2014.

That being said, Iowa State clearly has not been a team where top recruits go in hopes of winning a National Championship. However, even though the Cyclones haven’t been a top destination for top recruits, they have still been able to make the NCAA Tournament somewhat consistently.

With the exception of 2018, Iowa State has been able to make every tournament since 2012. But even with those seven tournament appearances, they only have a total of seven tournament wins, making the Sweet Sixteen only twice and not making it anywhere past that.

So even though the Cyclones have been a team that consistently makes the tournament, they have also been a team that is just kind of there and they are never expected to make a deep run.

So the question is, what does DJ Steward want? Does he want to play for a team that has a legitimate chance at winning a National Championship, or does he want to play for a team that will simply be a one-stop shop for the NBA and a team that won’t have a chance at going far?

If he wants the second option, then Iowa State could be the right spot for him, but if he wants the first, then Iowa State is nowhere near the right spot for the combo guard.

Indiana on the other hand is a team that while they haven’t made the tournament consistently, they have made the most of their time when they are in the tournament. The Hoosiers have made the tournament only four times since 2012 with their most recent appearance coming in 2016.

However, in those four appearances they have made the Sweet Sixteen three times, which means they clearly have made the most of their appearances when they are in the tournament.

In addition to that, Indiana has done rather well on the recruiting front lately as they even managed to get a commitment from Romeo Langford who was the fifth ranked player in the Class of 2018.

That just goes to show you that the Hoosiers are capable of winning on the recruiting front, but they have failed to turn those top recruits into a consistent tournament berth.

Indiana could be a legitimate destination for DJ Steward, but there might be some better choices out there in his final eight schools.

Home/NCAA Basketball News