Another week of the 2024-25 college basketball season is in the books. If it wasn’t clear already, the 2024 recruiting cycle is on an early trajectory to be one of the most talented classes in the modern era. Duke star forward Cooper Flagg dropped 26 points in a loss to Kentucky, Rutgers five-star forward Ace Bailey made his college debut and BYU wing Egor Demin continued his hot start that has him on pace to become a top 10 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Duke and Rutgers signed four of the top-five recruits this past cycle, and although this class is full of future NBA stars, the depth of the class is what stands out. Look no further than what is happening at Arizona State as an example. The Sun Devils signed three top-100 prospects (Jayden Quaintance, Joson Sanon and Amier Ali) for their best recruiting class in program history and all of them are making an immediate impact.
Arizona State is off to a 4-1 start, with the lone loss coming against No. 3 Gonzaga on the road. Sanon is averaging 12.8 points, which ranks second on the team behind veteran guard Basheer Jihad, and Quaintance has already racked up two games with at least 13 rebounds and three blocks.
Let’s jump into our rankings and get to our CBS Sports/USBWA Freshman of the Week for the 2024-25 college basketball season.
Freshman of the Week: Joson Sanon, Arizona State
Welcome back to the Frosh Watch, our weekly ranking of the ten most impressive freshmen in college basketball. CBS Sports has once again teamed up with the United States Basketball Writers Association and its Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year Award to present this every-Tuesday feature. Each week we’ll start by announcing the national Freshman of the Week honoree. The cycle for FOTW runs Tuesday-Monday.
The No. 24 overall player in the 2024 recruiting cycle was originally committed to Arizona before decommitting to sign with rival Arizona State. Sanon’s commitment helped solidify the best recruiting class at Arizona State in the modern era after coach Bobby Hurley landed Sanon and Quaintance after he backed off his pledge from Kentucky.
Sanon scored 21 points and grabbed three rebounds in Arizona State’s 87-76 win over Grand Canyon. He followed it up by recording 18 points and a career-high nine rebounds in 31 minutes of play during an 81-66 win over St. Thomas-Minnesota. Sanon is shooting 52.6% from the 3-point line on just under five attempts per night. He has started three of ASU’s five games and should continue to see his minutes increase throughout the season.
Previous Freshman of the Week winners
Frosh Watch: Ranking top 10 freshman
1. Cooper Flagg | G/F | Duke
Stats: 16.3 PPG | 9.5 RPG | 4.0 APG
Flagg had a quiet offensive performance in Duke’s 86-35 win over Wofford — finishing with a season-low eight points — but stuffed the stat sheet with nine rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks. Flagg had the best offensive performance of his career days prior in the loss to Kentucky, posting a team-high 26 points. Flagg had scored in double-digits in Duke’s first three games of the season coming into last weekend. Last week: 1
2. Dylan Harper | G | Rutgers
Stats: 21.3 PPG | 4.7 RPG | 3.7 APG
Harper has scored at least 20 points in his first three games. In Rutgers’ 98-81 win over Monmouth, Harper recorded 20 points, six assists, five rebounds and two blocks. After starting his college career 2 of 10 from the 3-point line, Harper had a nice bounce-back performance by making two of his three attempts from beyond the arc against Monmouth. Last week: 3
3. Egor Demin | G/F | BYU
Stats: 17.0 PPG | 7.5 APG | 3.5 RPG
Demin continues to be one of the most impressive players in this class. Demin recorded 14 points, five assists and three rebounds against Queens University. He followed it up by scoring 16 points with seven assists and three blocks. He’s recorded at least 14 points and dished out five assists in all four games. Last week: 2
4. Tre Johnson | G/F | Texas
Stats: 23.5 PPG | 3.0 RPG | 2.0 APG
Johnson started his college career by breaking Kevin Durant’s record for most points scored in a freshman debut. The encore was just as impressive, as he scored 37 points combined in wins over Chicago State and Mississippi Valley State. Johnson is averaging 23.5 points per night. He could finish as the top-scoring freshman in the country if he continues at this pace. Last week: 4
5. Ace Bailey | G/F | Rutgers
Stats: 17.0 PPG | 6.0 RPG | 2.0 SPG
Welcome to the rankings, Mr. Bailey. Bailey was left out last week because he missed the first two games due to an injury. Bailey recorded 17 points, six rebounds and two steals in the 98-81 win over Monmouth. In that game, he showed off his impressive display of difficult shotmaking that has drawn comparisons to current Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. Last week: NR
6. Boogie Fland | G | Arkansas
Stats: 15.3 PPG | 5.7 APG | 2.7 RPG
Fland scored a career-high 20 points and added four steals, three assists and three rebounds in the 91-72 win over Pacific. Fland has logged 20 assists in his first four games and is quickly earning the trust of Arkansas first-year coach John Calipari. Fland has played at least 32 minutes in all four games. Last week: 7
7. Liam McNeeley | F | UConn
Stats: 14.3 PPG | 8.0 RPG | 0.7 APG
After recording a double-double in his first two games, McNeeley recorded 15 points and three rebounds against Le Moyne. McNeeley knocked down 3 of 8 attempts from beyond the arc and added a steal and a block in the 90-49 victory. In that game against Le Moyne, McNeeley logged a season-high 32 minutes. Last week: 5
8. Kon Knueppel | G/F | Duke
Stats: 14.0 PPG | 4.0 RPG | 2.8 APG
Duke’s sharpshooting freshman struggled to find his shot in the 77-72 loss to Kentucky. Knueppel missed seven of his eight attempts from beyond the arc and finished with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists against the Wildcats. McNeeley responded by going 2 of 4 from the 3-point line later in the week against Wofford. Last week: 6
9. VJ Edgecombe | G | Baylor
Stats: 11.3 PPG | 7.5 RPG | 3.8 APG
Edgecombe has the tools to be an All-NBA defender at the next level. He’s the most athletic first-year player in the sport since Zion Williamson and if he puts the offensive game together, he will be hard to stop. Edgecombe scored a season-high 17 points and three blocks in the 104-41 win over Tarleton State. Edgecombe debuted at No. 4 in our rankings earlier this month and should have a case to move up in the next few weeks. Last week: 9
10. Derik Queen | C | Maryland
Stats: 16.3 PPG | 7.5 RPG | 2.5 APG
After recording 22 points and 20 rebounds in his first collegiate action earlier this month, Queen scored a career-high 24 points in a 78-74 loss to Marquette. Queen added seven rebounds, three assists and two blocks in the narrow loss. Last week: 10
