So how does your rating system work? Out of 10? SO 5.47 would be average, like a +2/+3?
No it's not out of 10. My system doesn't place an artificial cap on a player's ranking but anything above 18 is exceptional and 20 is super rare.
I take a slightly different approach (I think) than most coaches when it comes to evaluating players. I don't worry so much about his +/- rating but rather at his contributions. I designed it to rank players based on an estimated contribution to the team using both attributes and stats.
The best way to describe it is follows:
I have ranked 8430 players.
3 players > 20 (Eric Wright, Henry Pate (DOH!), Karim Haas)
103 players > 15 and less than 20
414 players > 12 and less than 15.00
2472 players > 7 and less than 12.00
1640 players > 5 and less than 7.00
3798 players <= 5.00
Like any system there are always exceptions but as a general rule, I try and avoid anyone below 7 on my system. (A luxury, I didn't have starting out).
You should assume that anyone your getting below 7.00 is likely going to be a role player or may have a significant flaw in their game. I've had some sub 7.00 players who didn't amount to much until their senior seasons as well. So it might be that they need a few years on the bench.
Some examples:
Mo Poisson 7.73 - Close to that 7 mark, has exc hands, scoring and int but has a huge flaw defensively. +6/-1
Tony Salazar 6.21 - My team's all time leading scorer but he wasn't much more than a scorer. I believe he actually came in a +1 but unfortunately I didn't save my 1st recruiting classes attributes.
Leon Cochran 12.92 - Very quietly has become one of the teams main scorers and may end up as the teams all time steals leader. +4
Marcus Metcalf 4.38 - Despite E hands, he just never really amounted to much. +3/-1
Gilbert Holden 3.81 - Like Metcalf, I hadn't fully developed my system when I recruited him otherwise I would have looked elsewhere. Might have saved on unrealistic expectations from the +4 SG.
Trent Shaffer 5.22 - A decent SF who could score and pass but was weak defensively and rebounding wise. +4/-1
Erin Atkins 11.40 - A few deacon coaches didn't like what Atkins had to offer, but he's played very well for me and if he gets a SR bump may just break the schools all time scoring record. +5
Michael Gonzalez 17.06 - A glue player who can do anything except score. Great hands, defense and rebounding. If he had the scoring punch likely would have been a 18-20 ranged player. +6
Bert Hutchings 18.16 - The best player in school history talent wise and he ended up on the top 10 scorers all time list. Hutchings simply made this team better however needed. +9
Jake Evans 14.20 - Time will tell with Evans but as a FR taking over the reigns at PG, the Storm's defense has never been this good. +7