NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Pros and cons of Shaedon Sharpe final 5 options

Oklahoma State Cowboys

The one-year Cade Cunningham experienced worked well with both sides, as the player went No. 1 in the NBA Draft and the team made the NCAA Tournament as a 4 seed and advanced to the Round of 32, surpassing preseason expectations.

Pros

The Cowboys showed that they’re capable of working with a top-tier prospect, allowing him to shine individually while still being able to surround him with good teammates to be competitive in the Big 12. If Sharpe wants to be the undisputed No. 1 offensive option and be able to put up 20+ ppg, this team could be the one.

They also have a good core of underclassmen already on board, even after guard Isaac Likekele and potentially Avery Anderson moves on after next season. Five-star transfers Moussa Cisse and Bryce Thompson are looking for new starts, while forwards Kalib Booner and Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe would be great complementary pieces for Sharpe.

Cons

Yet if Sharpe were to pick Oklahoma State by himself, I’m not sure if that would be enough to pick them to win the Big 12, with the likes of Kansas and Baylor around. The team is also going after five-star guard Anthony Black and five-star forward Yohan Traore in the 2022 class as well. If they get neither of them, this team likely would need some help and luck to be a legit Final Four threat.

There’s also an annoying factor that Sharpe would be compared to Cunningham all season long. Statistically, wins, overall impact, and everything else, that’s something that wouldn’t be very helpful to a prospect that I assume wants to create his own identity. And without a family connection with anyone at OK State, being on his own won’t be the best selling point if they can’t add anyone with him.