Now, to preface this breakdown a bit more, I would just like to point out my general findings on these types of rankings. I have nothing against 247Sports, but in my experience, I think ESPN's basketball recruiting coverage is the best in the market. Does that mean they are 100% accurate? Of course not. They, like every other recruiting service, make major mistakes. This is why it's better to look at as much info as you can find. 247Sports may not be quite as established or as good as ESPN in terms of ranking basketball talent, but they may actually spot something another recruiting service misses, which can really make a difference in evaluating a specific player. So, here are the rankings for the Top 100 2013 recruits in the nation according to 247Sports :
COMMITS
- #62 - Derrick Walton
- #71 - Zak Irvin
TARGETS
- #8 - James Young
- #24 - Dominic Woodson
- #59 - Devin Williams
- #82 - Demetrius Jackson
- #89 - E.C. Matthews
- #99 - Reggie Cameron
Let's start with Michigan's 2013 commitments that appeared on the list. Derrick Walton appeared a little bit lower than he did on ESPN, Scout, and Rival's lists, but this really isn't that far out of line. Walton has teetered around the top 40 in the country on ESPN's list for a while and that's his highest ranking of the major scouting services. Scout has him a little lower at #48 and Rivals puts him #57, which is pretty much right in line with 247Sports' ranking. It is a little disappointing to see Walton lower in the national rankings, but newer players being added are probably more to blame for this than anything else. Walton is a solid player and is still playing well in his camps so there's no need to worry.
Zak Irvin seems just about right to me and the other scouting services seem to agree. ESPN and Scout have him ranked right around the same level. The only service that seems down on him at this point is Rivals, which somehow has him outside the top 100 players in the country, which still surprises me. I was a little disappointed that I didn't see Michigan commit Mark Donnal on this list, until I realized that 247Sports hasn't even rated him yet (insert rant against 247). ESPN has him at #63, Scout has him at #80, and Rivals has him at #103. I think if he was rated, there's a good chance he makes the list and Michigan looks a lot better.
Now, moving on to Michigan's remaining 2013 targets. I just want to remind everyone that listing these guys in no way means that I think they are coming to Michigan. It just means that are targets of Michigan and there is at least a chance at a commitment. Starting off, James Young and E.C. Matthews seem to make complete sense to me. They differ little bit from the other lists, but they seem to be just about identical to the other sets of rankings.
Dominic Woodson's ranking really isn't that far out of line, but I do want to note that this is another ranking that seems to boost him up above ESPN's ranking of #57. Rivals has him at #27 and Scout has him at #36. I normally go with ESPN, but they seem to be the only service right now keeping him that low. Could this be a sign that Woodson is a lot better than most think? I certainly think so. Devin Williams also has a similar thing going for him in this list. ESPN has him ranked as #96, but Rivals and Scout have him at #76 and #75 respectively. I'm not convinced he is the #59 player in the country, but something is getting everyone except ESPN to boost Woodson and Williams up in their rankings.
Demetrius Jackson has some interesting rankings. ESPN and Scout both have him listed in the 30s, but Rivals has him listed at #70 and 247Sports has him listed at #82. There seems to be no trend with Jackson, which makes me fall back on my general system, when in doubt with these basketball rankings, go with ESPN, which leads me to believe he's probably better than this #82 ranking. Reggie Cameron, the final Michigan target listed on 247Sports' Top 100 players, seems to be just about right. ESPN has him at #99 and Rivals has him at #91.
Overall, this list isn't that far out of line. There are certainly some major errors, such as the failure to rate Mark Donnal, but some of their rankings, including Derrick Walton, will probably turn out to be a bit more accurate than some want to believe at this time. Even if Walton and some of Michigan's recruits follow this trend, it's not something that should worry fans. They are great players, whether they're listed #15 or #75. Beilein knows what players he's getting and he can develop their talent. However, it will be interesting to see further updates to these lists without a doubt and see where Michigan places on them.
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