Razorbacks' Brand of Basketball Under Calipari Continues to Rise This Week

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — It was a news heavy day for the Arkansas Razorbacks Thursday with mostly great-to-grand news across multiple sports.

Whether it was the men's and women's tennis program being reinstated to multiple basketball players seeing their NBA stock rise, the Razorbacks brand is steadily growing.

For coach John Calipari's program, developments such as Abdou Toure’s rise to official 5-star designation adds further to an already loaded signing class, while his stars at the NBA Combine continue to show why those around the basketball world are beginning to take the Razorbacks seriously.

Highly-rated wing Abdou Toure from Connecticut and originally from Guinea during a visit to the Arkansas Razorbacks in Fayetteville, Ark. | Arkansas Communications

Toure Gets Fifth Star

Arkansas sealed its No. 1 ranked class for Rivals/On3 Thursday, and No. 2 by 247Sports behind Duke despite having four 5-star signees.

Long-time small forward commit Abdou Toure has seen a rapid ascension throughout his recruitment, but has mostly been slotted around the late-20s to mid-30's this cycle.

After Toure was awarded back-to-back Connecticut Gatorade Player of the Year honors as well as Allen Iverson National Player of the Year following his standout senior season, 247's latest evaluation now makes him a consensus 5-star across the three major recruiting platforms.

Toure is Arkansas' second straight winner of the prestigious Iverson MVP award as unanimous All-American Darius Acuff won it last spring.

He averaged 25 points, seven rebounds and three assists per game to help his Notre Dame High School team win its fifth consecutive Southern Connecticut Conference tournament title and reach Connecticut's Division I tournament semifinals.

After being left off the McDonald's All-American Game roster, Toure went on to terrorize the field at the Nike Hoops Summit in Portland. His coming out party against top prospects across the country showed off his developed three-level offensive skillset, disturbing length on the perimeter and bounciness in transition.

Arkansas Razorbacks forward Trevon Brazile dunking against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in a game at American Airlines Center in Dallas. | Michael Morrison-allHOGS Images

Brazile Lifts Roof of Wintrust Arena

Arkansas' skilled big man had himself a day in scrimmage time playing for Team Rivers. He scored 16 points and added nine rebounds in a 100-76 win. Brazile showed off his shot making ability by going 7-of-17 from the floor, including two made three pointers in 26 minutes of action.

Those in attendance also watched him not be called for a single foul and never turned the ball over, which is key for players looking to move on in their professional basketball careers.

Likely the most impressive part of his NBA Combine performance to this point was him raising the roof with his 12-feet-6.5 vertical reach, which is the highest at the event.

He also showed off a 9-foot-1 standing reach plus a 41.5- inch vertical jump. His shuttle run rated among the 94th percentile, and his 3/4 court sprint put him among the 85th percentile of athletes in attendance.

Arkansas Razorbacks' Meleek Thomas against the Arizona Wildcats in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in San Jose, Calif. | Munir El-Khatib-allHOGS Images

Thomas Shoots Up Draft Boards

Whether Hogs' guard Meleek Thomas decides to stay or go in the NBA Draft is one of the biggest questions surrounding coach John Calipari's roster.

If he stays in the draft, Arkansas is going to be fine with three talented freshmen in Jordan Smith, Jr., JJ Andrews and Toure available in the backcourt to go along with 5-star forward commit Mikka Muurinen.

There's also a possibility Billy Richmond comes back, and that would give Calipari a good dilemma to have when it comes to figuring out a rotation. When most potential draftees decide to opt out of combine scrimmages it usually means they're completely focused on the draft.

That very well could be the case for Thomas since he sits just outside the Top 20 picks in what is considered one of the deepest draft boards in NBA history.

NBC Sports: No. 21, Detroit Pistons
Yahoo Sports: No. 23, Atlanta Hawks
ESPN: No. 29, Cleveland Cavaliers
Bleacher Report: No. 30, Dallas Mavericks
CBS Sports: No. 30, Dallas Mavericks

While he could possibly return to Arkansas for his sophomore season and sign more NIL agreements, it makes too much sense for Thomas to forego his eligibility and chase his NBA dream.

The 6-foot-3, 190 pound shooting guard averaged 16 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and only one turnover in 31 minutes of action per game for the Razorbacks this season. He made over 44% of his field goal attempts, including a 42% mark from three and a team-high 84% at the free throw line.

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