Rhode Island 2018 Rankings Announced

New England Recruiting Report | Thursday, August 17th, 2017

The most anti-climactic news in Rhode Island is that Cole Swider remains the top prospect in the state.

The 6-foot-8 forward is coming off a big EYBL season with BABC in which he committed to Villanova despite earning an offer from Duke. He’s an elite shooter of the basketball but has also improved his athleticism and versatility. In short, he’s the runaway pick for #1 and it isn’t close.

The race begins at #2 where Bishop Hendricken wing Tyrone Weeks not only defended his spot, but more importantly solidified himself as a scholarship caliber player this summer with Metro Boston. His length and elastic frame give him a very clear physical upside as he continues to fill out his frame, but he’s also proven himself an active defender and high level slasher.

Weeks is really just the tip of the iceberg though when it comes to other potential scholarship prospects in the state as there are a handful of others who have a legitimate chance at playing their way onto that level with strong senior seasons, making this one of the deeper Rhode Island classes we’ve seen.

Westerly’s David Tiedemann began to make a name for himself this year with PTT Elite and has definite tools for the next level with his length and a naturally soft touch that continues to extend away from the basket. The key is adding muscle and learning to play through contact on a consistent basis.

St. Andrew’s forward Marko Savic is set to return for his second season in the NEPSAC and should be ready to step into a larger role following continued progression with the Boston Warriors this summer. Savic has good size at 6-foot-8 and a wealth of budding versatility on both ends of the floor.

St. George’s Angelo Stuart put up huge numbers last winter but didn’t make quite the same splash this spring and summer. He’ll have some more help this coming season and so it will be an opportunity for him to show that he can both play a substantial individual role while also helping the team be more collectively succesful.   

Dillon Grant, a 6-foot-9 big man from Cape Cod who will do a post-graduate year at St. Andrew’s, is going to be an intriguing prospect to watch this coming season. While relatively unknown for most of his high school career to date, he made a bigger splash than expected during June’s Elite 75 College Showcase and if he can acclimate to higher levels of competition this fall, his name should generate increasing buzz.

Another new name on the scene is that of South Kingston’s Keegan Records. While he was well-known to the RIIL last year season after earning all-state accolades, college coaches are only now just starting to know about him. Records ran with Black Bear North this July and earned a recent offer from Mars Hill University in North Carolina after a solid showing in the live period. He has good size and is really just starting to come into his own so he’ll be another name to monitor in the Ocean State this year.

St. Andrew’s also has a pair of lethal shot-makers on the wing, both of whom have a complimenting basketball I.Q. to match in Brandon Kolek and Sean Christy. Both are already priorities for a variety of division IIl schools with hopes of potentially playing their way up a level as well.

The top ten is rounded out by Wheeler School guard Elijah Ramos, who may be undersized but is as gutsy and scrappy as they come, and projects as impactful at the right level of college basketball as he’s been in high school to date.

Click here for the updated Rhode Island 2018 rankings.