NCAA Basketball: Top-25 impact incoming recruiting classes entering 2024-25 season

3. Arkansas Razorbacks

After Eric Musselman departed the Razorbacks for USC, HOF head coach John Calipari shocked the college basketball world by moving inter-conference to Fayetteville, tasked with retooling a roster situation with zero scholarship players.

One of the more pressing questions Calipari faced in April was what would happen with the recruits that signed with Kentucky. Were they going to stay in Lexington? Were they going to follow Calipari? Were they going to elect to go elsewhere?

Thankfully, John Calipari is known for his recruiting chops, and he flipped three four-star prospects: Boogie Fland, Billy Richmond and Karter Knox from Kentucky to Arkansas. After all, what is a John Calipari-coached team without highly coveted prospects?

Because Calipari started from (literal) scratch, the Razorbacks look to only use eight or nine guys in the rotation, meaning minimal depth is in store in year one. However, this opens the door for Calipari’s trio of freshmen to jump right in and make an immediate impact, instantly displaying their NBA-like upside.

Arkansas’ core of nine players will have no shortage of talent this year, and the incoming recruiting class in Fayetteville will be vital to the Razorbacks’ success in year one of the John Calipari era.