3/17/2020 basketball Edit

Howard, U-M Outshining The Rest Of The Big Ten On The '20 Recruiting Trail

Austin Fox • Maize&BlueReview

Staff Writer

It has been well-documented how hot of a start Michigan Wolverines basketball head coach Juwan Howard has gotten off to on the recruiting trail, with his 2020 five-man class currently sitting at No. 5 nationally.

The only four schools who have strung together better hauls so far are three blue bloods in Kentucky (No. 1 class), Duke (No. 2) and North Carolina (No. 3), and Tennessee at No. 4.

Michigan Wolverines basketball coach Juwan Howard — The Michigan Wolverines' basketball team finished 19-12 this year. (AP Images)

Howard may not be done adding to his 2020 haul either, with Lakewood (Calif.) Mayfair five-star shooting guard Josh Christopher heavily expected to sign with either Arizona State or the Maize and Blue this spring.

Potentially adding Christopher to a class that already contains Raleigh (N.C.) Word of God Christian Academy five-star power forward Isaiah Todd, Hyattsville (Md.) DeMatha four-star center Hunter Dickinson, Montverde (Fla.) Academy four-star shooting guard Zeb Jackson, Washington D.C. Gonzaga four-star small forward Terrance Williams and Hollywood (Fla.) University School three-star small forward Jace Howard would cement Michigan's 2020 crop among the nation's elite.

Todd, Dickinson, Jackson and Williams all rank among the country's top-100 players, with the former two residing inside the nation's top-35.

Michigan's three four-star commits (Dickinson, Jackson and Williams) are tied for the second most in the entire country and are the most in the Big Ten.

Howard is outshining nearly every other conference member on the recruiting trail in a big way so far, with Illinois (at No. 13 nationally) the only other league school whose class even compares to the Wolverines'.

Wisconsin's checks in a distant third in the league behind Michigan and Illinois, sitting at No. 25 in the country.

The Maize and Blue's class is bound to fluctuate in the national rankings at least a little bit between the April 15-May 20 NCAA signing period, simply based on whether or not teams around them add (or lose) players.

It does appear, however, that this year's haul will be the program's best since 2012 when it brought in the No. 7 class in America, an iconic five-man crop that was headlined by five-star forward Glenn Robinson III and two four-stars in center Mitch McGary and guard Nik Stauskas.

The Maize and Blue followed up their impressive 2012 class by signing the nation's No. 12 haul in 2013, a group that contained five-star forward Zak Irvin and two four-stars in guard Derrick Walton and forward Mark Donnal.

Both of the aforementioned classes finished No. 2 in the Big Ten to Indiana, however, with this year's crop having an outstanding chance of laying claim as the conference's best when it's all said and done.