1. Kentucky Wildcats
John Calipari signed three No. 1 classes in a row prior to finishing second in 2012. With one phone call, Kentucky makes the top three on just about any recruit's list. When it pushes hard enough, the Wildcats can be counted on to be a finalist in nearly every situation Calipari deems important. There isn't a program that swings a mightier stick than UK at this moment in this era of college basketball. When it comes to getting involved with top-five prospects, Kentucky is king. It is the program that causes the most consternation for rival recruiters. It has its titles, All-Americans and an embarrassment of lottery picks under Calipari, and that's what ultimately creates the notion that UK is the top dog. UK has the power, patience and confidence to wait out elite players and doesn't flinch.
2. North Carolina Tar Heels
The Tar Heels remain exceptionally powerful. Roy Williams, Michael Jordan, the Dean Dome, national titles and NBA draft picks combine to form a formidable foe. One can argue that UNC does its damage among the top-25 ranked players and, like Kentucky, makes most of the final lists it wishes. In situations where there are few voices and layers to recruitment, North Carolina turns up the heat on those top players.
3. Duke Blue Devils
Mike Krzyzewski remains one of the elite closers in the game. Duke does not target every top player at every position and its amount of targets have traditionally been the smallest in major college basketball. The Blue Devils recruit to their profile, spend copious quantities of time with their first-tier targets and take big cuts at the plate. Like UNC, Duke prefers to avoid situations where there are numerous voices surrounding the player and recruit through families and high school coaches. When you're at the top, you can be selective regarding situations.
4. Kansas Jayhawks
Bill Self's been at this a long time. He's constructed his own empire in Lawrence, and the fact of the matter is KU is not to be taken lightly on the recruiting trail. With a phone call, Kansas creates all kinds of problems for the rest of the teams on the list. When a recruit visits Kansas during the season, Self's club is tough to beat once the player is exposed to the atmosphere. KU's brilliance has been in recruiting elite guys like Mario Chalmers but also developing lottery picks like Markieff Morris, Marcus Morris and Thomas Robinson.
5. Florida Gators
The Florida Gators don't share the half-century history of many of its brethren, which makes the kingdom Billy Donovan's carved out for himself in Gainesville all the more impressive. Florida, on a yearly basis, is involved with as many good players as just about any other program. Under Donovan, John Pelphrey, Anthony Grant and Donnie Jones formed the "Gainesville Mafia," which wiped out many on the recruiting trail prior to the Gators' back-to-back titles and before Pelphrey, Grant and Jones got their own head coaching gigs. Overall, the Gators have been consistent in their ability to attract talent.
6. Texas Longhorns
The Longhorns, like their in-state enemy Baylor, gets after it in their fertile region. Their last four classes have been ranked No. 4, 4, 8 and 4. They also have a good brand nationally, aided by the smiling face of Kevin Durant, who is the program's not-so-secret weapon on the trail. His popularity helps the Texas brand, and not many years go by without a first-round pick from Texas. While schools above the Longhorns on this list can crack a recruit's top three pretty much at any time, Texas is adept at making the top five.
7. Baylor Bears
If you're thinking this is pretty high for the Bears on the list, you're not alone. Baylor doesn't have the attendance figures or Final Fours that the others boast. What it does have is a burgeoning history of lottery and first-round picks. Baylor is elite when it comes to targeting singular lottery-type recruits in a given year (Isaiah Austin, Quincy Miller,Perry Jones III, etc.). Baylor sticks to its region for its stars, but recently spread its wings and came up with Miller. The players view Baylor as a player's program, and the national exposure it's gotten in other sports has fed into Scott Drew's pitch.
8. Arizona Wildcats
The Wildcats are strong out west and because of the complexion of the staff, dabble in most areas of the country. No one has recruited California better than Sean Miller in recent years. In fact, Arizona's presence in the Golden State has been a huge part of its resurgence as of late. When the Wildcats make a phone call, someone on the other end is picking up and Miller's program has as much upward mobility on this list as anyone.
9. UCLA Bruins
Before you start with "How's UCLA so low?", think about where the program was, where it went and where it's headed. UCLA is the resurgent national team on the list, and it's had a wild ride in the last decade. From the highs of Final Fours to the lows of missing NCAA tournaments, the program's seen it all. With last year's No. 1 recruiting class, Ben Howland re-armed the program and he did it with guys from all over. We've already noticed the benefits from the class, as players are more apt to toss UCLA's name around in 2013 and 2014, so the momentum is trending the Bruins' way. For a stretch, UCLA was not closing kids at its normal rate, but that looks like it's about to change. This program had the No. 1 class five years ago and was tops again this year. It was the lull in between that hampered them from being higher than No. 9.
10. Syracuse Orange
The Orange have staying power. Jim Boeheim's lineups have top players and they often tangle with the best to get them. Syracuse tries to own a sizeable radius of its region but has national swagger attached to its name and the Orange have extended beyond their region to score big players up and down the East Coast.
Knocking on the door
Indiana Hoosiers
Indiana was the most debated team that was considered and IU will be on this list soon, if its plan is executed. The Hoosiers built from within their borders, but now is at the point where Tom Crean intends to branch out nationally.
Ohio State Buckeyes
Like Indiana, the Buckeyes are formidable in their state and region, but haven't branched out nationally as far as the schools on the list. Ironically, the same could be said for another Big Ten program, Michigan State.
Louisville Cardinals
Overshadowed by the exploits of Kentucky in its own state, Rick Pitino still gets players.
In three years it could happen here ...
NC State Wolfpack
It took Mark Gottfried exactly one year to tangle with his friends in Chapel Hill and Durham. The Pack toed the line with Duke for Amile Jefferson and made it a battle. Their candidacy for making the list is to be determined, but should be watched carefully.
UNLV Rebels
So far, the Rebels have made the most noise with transfers. To move into the next tier, they'll need to win more battles like they did for Anthony Bennett.
