Arizona's recruiting dominance continues with addition of elite wing
Arizona's impressive run of recruiting success out West continued Sunday night with a commitment from yet another five-star prospect.
Small forward Ray Smith, Rivals.com's No. 10 prospect in the class of 2015, announced via Twitter that he will attend Arizona. The 6-foot-7 Las Vegas native had scholarship offers from Georgetown, Louisville and almost all the top programs in the West.
The addition of Smith means Arizona has now landed 10 Rivals.com five-star prospects since the 2011 recruiting class. That recruiting dominance is the biggest reason why Arizona has been to three Sweet 16s and two Elite Eights under Miller and why it feels like only a matter of time before the Wildcats break through with a Final Four bid.
Arizona was thought to be the favorite to land Smith for a while, but he committed sooner than expected, perhaps because the torn ACL he suffered during the first week of the July evaluation period will sideline him for the next 6 to 9 months. Assuming he regains his explosiveness after he recovers from the injury, he should be a potential replacement for Rondae Hollis-Jefferson if the rising sophomore opts to turn pro next spring.
Long and athletic, Smith finishes well in transition and has the tools to be an excellent defender. He rose from off the radar into the top 20 in most recruiting rankings with an excellent spring, though his outside shooting remains a work in progress.
Smith joins a recruiting class that already includes Temecula, Calif. product Justin Simon, an elite combo guard with the length and athleticism to also be an excellent defender. Arizona is also considered one of the favorites to land coveted power forward Ivan Raab and a contender for several other elite prospects in the class of 2015.
Arizona's 2015 recruiting haul might already have been more impressive were it not for the decommitment of point guard Tyler Dorsey a few months after Simon also came aboard.
No matter, however. As talented as Dorsey is, Arizona should have little trouble finding a replacement with the way Miller is recruiting.
For more Arizona news, visit GoAzCats.com.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
