When the final ranking for the 2025 national class went live last week, there were only a select few international prospects included on the list, despite the fact that we’ve seen international recruiting reach unprecedented highs this spring. NIL has made it more lucrative for players to come play college basketball than it would be to play in most professional leagues around the globe, but in there lies the distinction.
The vast majority of international prospects that we’re now seeing come to the college ranks are not akin to incoming high school seniors. They are a different type of prospect. They are usually a little older, more experienced, but often with less college eligibility. Many of these international prospects are already 20, 21, or even sometimes 22 years old. Many of them have professional experience and, because of that, are not being granted four full years of eligibility.
That is why we have decided not to rank these types of international prospects with the 2025 class. They follow a different track to college, along with the experience and age component.
So, while names like Jacob Furphy and Luke Fennell remained in the rankings, since they are incoming freshmen who we have been able to evaluate within the last year at the NBA Academy, the vast majority were not. Instead, these other international prospects now make up almost an entirely new track, like the transfer portal or the junior college ranks, where college coaches can go to build out their roster.
And college coaches have been doing just that in recent weeks and months.
So while not ranked in the traditional sense, these international prospects are still an important part of the college basketball landscape and the upcoming season, and will play significant roles on top teams. So with that in mind, here’s a look at some of the top international names to know, prosects who we fully expect to have a chance to be impact college basketball players next season.
Sananda Fru | Germany | 6-11, F/C | Louisville
Age: turns 22 in August
Measuring in at 6-foot-10 (without shoes) with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, Fru is a long and versatile frontcourt piece who will turn 22 years old in August before his freshman year at Louisville. On film, he shows offensive value as a finisher as well as flashes of floor-spacing potential. He’s a willing ball-mover and doesn’t need to be a focal point to make an impact. Defensively, his size and length are clear weapons while he appears to have real potential to be versatile on that end, both from a positional standpoint and guarding ball-screens in various ways.
Johann Grunloh | Germany | 6-11, C/F | Virginia
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
