Why Arizona State could be dark horse to win Big 12 basketball title

The 6-foot-9, 225-pounder is ASU's highest-ranked commitment since Josh Christopher in 2020 and adds needed size and physicality on offense. Quaintance averaged 6.7 points and 6.5 rebounds for Team USA in six games at the FIBA U16 Americas Championship in 2023.

ASU, which finished 14-18 last season, also has added five-star shooting guard Joson Sanon, who flipped his commitment Wednesday from Arizona, per 247 Sports.

At 6-foot-5 and 188 pounds, ESPN's 22nd-ranked recruit appeared to base his decision on star Arizona guard Caleb Love's decision to return for another season.

ESPN 100 prospect Amier Ali and three-star guard Bo Aldridge round out ASU's highest-rated recruiting class in program history. The Sun Devils ranked as high as third until four-star power forward Sammie Yeanay announced Thursday on Instagram that he had reopened his recruitment.

Hurley has also shown an ability to draw high-caliber players from the transfer portal.

Ball State transfer forward Basheer Jihad, who led the Cardinals in scoring, rebounding and blocks in 2023, and Missouri State transfer point guard Alston Mason, the top scorer for the Bears last season, transferred to ASU for their final seasons of eligibility.

Additionally, transfers BJ Freeman (Milwaukee), Brandon Gardner (Southern Cal) and returning Sun Devil Austin Nunez give Hurley as deep a bench as he's ever had.

The beauty of college basketball is a school has two opportunities to win a conference title, earning the regular-season crown or winning its conference tournament.

The Sun Devils, of course, have their work cut out for them against Big 12 bluebloods Kansas, Baylor, Iowa State and Houston.

However, ASU's combination of top-rated talent and Hurley's experience in coaching against former  Pac-12 stalwarts Oregon, UCLA and Arizona might be enough to get the team into March Madness.