Strait Recruiting: Why is Shabazz Muhammad SO good?

The biggest name on the visitor list at Big Blue Madness two weekends ago also happens to be the top recruit in the 2012 class. Shooting guard Shabazz Muhammad chose to visit Lexington for the opening ceremonies of the Kentucky basketball season, something that Kentucky fans should be thrilled about. Muhammad is without a doubt the most talented player in the class, dominating AAU games over the summer with relative ease.

So can Calipari pull in his third top overall recruit in his four recruiting classes at Kentucky? They might be in pretty good position, but please believe that every other school in the country is bending over backwards to haul this guy in. We spoke to Rick Broering, a recruiting analyst at Rivals.com, who has watched Shabazz Muhammad several times and has some insight on his game and recruiting.

Broering on why Muhammad is the top player in the 2012 class…

He’s the most ready to make a big impact at the next level, in my opinion. He’s elite strong, fast and explosive.

On the importance of Muhammad’s presence at Big Blue Madness…

Well it’s pretty big because he is on the west coast and obviously, Kentucky puts on a good show for Big Blue Madness. He’s pretty tight with guys like Kidd-Gilchrist and Teague, so him getting to hang out with those guys didn’t hurt either.

What part of his game goes unrecognized…

I don’t think this is necessarily unknown, but I don’t think he gets enough credit for his mid-range game. His pull-up jumper is nasty because of the elevation he gets on it.

On how important Muhammed is to Calipari and Kentucky…

He’s big in the sense that Cal would again have the top ranked recruit in the class, and it’d be hard to beat a class with Archie Goodwin and Muhammad in it. It’s not a situation where it’s going to make or break the program by any means though.

How he compares to other Calipari recruits in his first three seasons…

He’s the top player in his class so he has to be up there pretty high. I’d put John Wall and Anthony Davis ahead of him as prospects, but he’s up there potential wise with anyone else.

On Kentucky’s chances of landing him…

Depends on who you ask right now. Some say Kentucky is the leader and others will say UCLA. I think Kentucky will certainly be in there until the end.

On having a top-flight shooting guard in Cal’s offense…

I don’t think it’d do anything to it that would be drastically different. However, he’s a perfect fit for the offense. He’s a nightmare to guard when attacking the basket with his strength and explosiveness.

On his development…

He’s unstoppable at the high school level, even when going against talented AAU opponents. His strength and athleticism will allow him to compete at a high level from day one. He can handle the ball and has a nice jump-shot especially from mid-range. He is capable of getting really hot from beyond the arc as well, but he’s somewhat streaky from the perimeter. That’s one thing that I’m sure he’ll work hard on is to become more consistent from 3-point land.

On when he will make his decision…

He and his dad have said that they are going to take their time and make all the visits. I think this one could definitely wait til spring.

We want to thank Rick Broering for his time and efforts. Broering follows the national recruiting scene and is also the main contributor for Xavier’s Rivals site, MusketeerScoop.com.