Who Were NC State’s Last 2 Top-10 Recruits?

NC State is hoping to land Dennis Smith Jr. and Bam Adebayo, who both rank in the Top 10 of the 2016 basketball recruiting class.  Smith is the #4 overall player according to both Scout, Rivals, and ESPN, and he is the #1 point guard in the class.  Adebayo is the #7 overall player according to Rivals and #8 according to ESPN.

I don’t know if NC State fans can quite grasp what the possibility of landing two Top-10 players in one class means for the Wolfpack.  The talent on the court for the Wolfpack in 2016 would be astounding and the future of recruiting in Raleigh would be very bright.

This begs the question.  Who were the last 2 Top 10 players that NC State landed?  JJ Hickson in 2007 and Julius Hodge in 2001.

JJ Hickson was the #10 overall player in the 2007 class according to Rivals. Hickson averaged 14.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game as a Freshman, and earned a spot on the All-ACC Freshman team and was an Honorable Mention for the All-ACC team.  After one season in Raleigh, Hickson was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the 19th overall pick in the 1st round of the 2008 draft.  The former Wolfpack power forward has spent the past 7 seasons in the NBA, and has averaged 10 points and 7 rebounds in his career.

Hickson High School Rivals Highlights

Julius Hodge was the #7 player in the 2001 recruiting class according to Bob Gibbons, #5 according to ESPN, #7 according to The Sporting News, and #9 according to PrepStars.  Over his 4-year career at NC State, Hodge averaged 15.8, 6 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game.  The Juice earned 1st Team All-ACC honors in 2003 and 2004, and was named the ACC Player of the year in 2004.  He finished his career 3rd on NC State’s all-time scoring list. Hodge was drafted by the Denver Nuggets with the 20th overall pick in the 1st round of the 2005 NBA Draft.  After playing 2 seasons in the NBA, Hodge went on to play 8 seasons professionally all over the world.

Julius Hodge High School Highlights (skip to 3:17)