Throw all the criticism you want towards the Dave Rice and his UNLV basketball program. They’ve underachieve. They seem are all flash and no substance. Whatever critique, it’s probably valid, except for one.
No one is denying that Rice and his staff can recruit with almost anyone in the country, especially outside of the program’s local geographic territory.
Sure, they’ve raided Southern California often, and landed five-star local prodigy Stephen Zimmerman last cycle. But they’ve experienced just as much success out East, with their most recent commitment coming from Tennessee point guard, and four-star prospect, Jaylen Fisher.
Fisher was reportedly down to Memphis and the Rebels, despite also considering options like Baylor and Indiana, committing to Rice and company last week.
His pledge jumped the Rebels into the 247Sports Composite Top 10 recruiting rankings, teaming him up with fellow top 100 prospect Justin Jackson, as well as two others in Christian Vital and Carlos Johnson. But, the thing is, this has never been a concern for those inside or or outside the UNLV program. Rice has not been short on prep stars, highly touted mixtape warriors, and the like.
They key will be whether or not the staff can help mold Fisher into a creator for himself as well as those around him, and bring a level of offensive cohesion that UNLV has yet to truly enjoy over the past five seasons. Nonetheless, it has to be comforting for Rice to know that recruiting struggles have nothing to do with his shaky job status…at least, we think.
