Final 2024 Top 150 Recruit Rankings on 247 Features Four Boilermakers (2024)

Recruiting website 247 have released their final recruit rankings for the 2024 class and Purdue’s six man class is heavily featured with four players finding a place in the top 150. That puts the 2024 class at 10th in the country in the overall team rankings nationally and only behind a Rutgers Scarlett Knights class that features two of the top three players in Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper within the B1G.

Leading the Boilers’ class is Kanon Catchings who finished at 38th overall and the 8th rated power forward. Adam Finkelstein of 247 said this about Catchings:

Catchings is a late-blooming, versatile forward who could be just scratching the surface of his long-term upside. He has multi-dimensional tools that include size, athleticism, ball-skills, and potential positional versatility. He’s a fluid mover for his size, who covers the court with long, bouncy strides. He not only plays above the rim athletically, but shows glimpses of quick reactions tied to that leaping ability, even as a weak-side shot-blocker. He has the foundation for a versatile skill set as well. He has good natural touch and is currently a capable three-point shooter with the potential to make that a developing weapon in the years to come (27% 3pt and 80% FT in EYBL play). He puts the ball on the floor comfortably, but is much more effective attacking a defender that is already on the move, rather than trying to create an advantage with his first step. Catchings is a combo-forward of sorts, who may be more four than three at this point, but has the potential to evolve into a true big wing. Physically, he’s still lean and often unable to play through contact, and yet still in the very earliest stages of filling out his frame. In addition to getting stronger, he also must be more consistent with his overall approach and impact on the game, but long-term, there aren’t many prospects in the national class of 2024 than have more still untapped potential.

Catchings had a previous jump from 117th all the way to 17th at the beginning of 2023 and saw his stock dip slightly through to the finish but the lengthy power forward may have the highest ceiling of any player in the 2024 class nationally.

Next in the rankings is the final piece of the class in combo guard Gicarri Harris. The guard from Grayson High School in Georgia was one of the biggest risers in the final rankings, jumping 26 spots all the way to 64th overall and the 10th rated combo guard, as well. Harris was ranked at 122nd at one point before his final spot.

Adam Finkelstein had this to say about Harris in a November 2023 article:

First, he’s versatile. He’s best off the ball, but he can slide over to the point if needed, which sets him up to play alongside either of the returning starters in the backcourt. Second, he’s both long and strong, so the physical transition to the college level should be easier for him than most. Third, he has a pretty good instinctive feel for the game. He stays composed and sturdy vs. pressure and rarely gets rattled our sped up.

Most important though may be his ability to shoot the basketball. Harris has one of the cleaner releases of any prospect inside the Top247 with pretty rotation on his ball. Combine that with the rest of his floor-game and, at minimum, he’s going to be a valuable floor-spacer inside Purdue’s half-court attack. The long-term upside though is a player who could be a threat to come off screens both on and off the ball, ultimately growing into a primary offensive domino in the half-court.

Harris isn’t the highest ranked prospect in Purdue’s class and he doesn’t have the highest ceiling. What he does though is probably the highest floor of any of the six players in the class, a still relatively high ceiling, and a lot of different ways to get himself on the court from day one next year.

The third highest recruit in the 2024 class is Raleigh Burgess out of Cincinnati, OH. The 6’10 center may eventually end up as a power forward type player similar to Mason Gillis but some injuries the last two seasons have slowed his development a bit before finally being healthy for most of his senior season. Burgess has floated in the 130’s for most of his career in the rankings before settling in a 137th.

Check out Joe Jackson’s threat on Burgess here:

On signing day, Matt Painter had this to say about Burgess:

“Raleigh has the ability to play two positions at the four and the five and his athleticism, mobility and the ability to play both in and out is something that we really looked for in this class. He has the ability to stretch the defense, but also play down low. His versatility and size makes him interchangeable and he plays really hard and has a lot of fun playing the game.”

The final player making it into the top 150 is also the player who made the single largest jump in the entire class rankings in Daniel Jacobsen. The next 7 foot big man to step on campus for Matt Painter, Jacobsen saw a rise at the end of his career largely due to his enrollment in perennial prep school power Brewster Academy. His 43 spot increase in the rankings placed his at 149th in the country, up from 192nd, showcases what experts this Jacobsen could eventually be for the Boilers.

On3’s Jamie Shaw had this to say in a scouting report of Jacobsen:

“You see the size immediately with Daniel Jacobsen, a true 7-footer. He has solid length and he moves well – very fluid. Jacobsen will need to continue getting stronger, but that should come as he continues to age (he is young fit his class). Jacobsen can really shoot the ball. He has range off the catch and a repeatable release and load. There is some capability already of shooting off movement, which is unique for a player his size. As he continues to get stronger, more will come with his defensive presence, but he is fluid and has solid timing. There is nice upside here and an intriguing – and clear – pathway as he continues to grow and develop.”

The final two players in the 2024 class, Jack Benter and CJ Cox, did not end up with a ranking although the two players are ranked positionally. Benter was ranked the 51st shooting guard in the country while Cox ended up at 31st for combo guards (although he projects more as a point guard).

This class features a ton of what Matt Painter has looked to build toward over the last several years, with players who can play and guard multiple positions. Purdue is currently over by one scholarship so there is still some work to be done from a numbers standpoint.