By Evan Daniels
Nerlens Noel and Shabazz Muhammad impacted the 2012 recruiting class rankings in a big way. Noel has Kentucky at No. 1 overall, while UCLA jumped into the top five after snagging a commitment from Muhammad.
Arizona remains at No. 2, sandwiched between Kentucky and UCLA. Click here for the complete list of Scout's Top 25.
Heres's an assessment of the Wildcats' signees:
Brandon Ashley, power forward (ranked fifth overall)
A terrific all-around talent, Ashley, a 6-foot-8, 200-pound power forward out of California, is a versatile prospect with a lot of pure ability. He runs the floor well, is a quality athlete, has a great set of hands and can score inside. He still needs to get stronger and add counter moves, but he's got tremendous upside and is one of the better power forward prospects in the 2012 class.
Kaleb Tarcwezski, center (eighth overall)
As Tarczewski's high school career has developed, he's continued to get better. Working out with former NBA coach John Carroll has helped him tremendously. Although his post moves still need consistency, he's added a jump hook and is starting to become more confident when he makes moves on the block. At this stage, he's a terrific shot blocker with good athleticism and timing. The 7-footer is one of the best post prospects in the 2012 class.
Grant Jerrett, power forward (16th overall)
An early commit to Arizona, Jerrett is one of the best prospects not only on the west coast but throughout the country. The 6-foot-8, 210-pound big man has a great set of hands and terrific touch around the basket. He's comfortable finishing with both hands and can use a jump hook over either shoulder. We would like him to be more of a presence on the defensive end, but his overall ability is impressive.
Gabe York, shooting guard (47th overall)
An explosive player who is capable of dunking on you as much as he lighting it up from deep. York is a high level leaper who knows how to use his gifts by attacking from the opening tip. Now he does need to focus more on the defensive end and can stand to get stronger, but York is a solid and explosive scorer off the ball. He'll need to clean up his shot selection and make a defensive commitment at the high major level.
Scout.com's Brian Snow has this analysis of Ashley's and Jerrett's play at the McDonald's All-American Game.
At times during the week Ashley seemed to be coasting and didn’t look all that interested, but like he usually does when the game started he came to play. Ashley was good on the glass and converted on the interior to put forth a solid effort in which his combination of skill and athleticism showed through.
There is nothing flashy about what Jerrett does. Not an elite athlete or super strong, Jerrett faces the rim well and proved he can make the mid-range jumper and even did a few things on the glass that were good. Still he gets pushed from the rim too easily, but Jerrett has a lot of things to build on if he addresses some of the physical concerns.
