Canadian Prospects Get New 5-Star Rankings System

Caleb Houstan, Charles Bediako, Ryan Nembhard, and Marlon Lestin are all five-star prospects in Canada's new basketball rankings

Had Jefferson Koulibaly been able to show his stardom in Buffalo instead of Hamilton, Ont. the story of his recruiting would have been totally different. He would have had the kind of exposure top American basketball prospects get, constantly traveling to tournaments around the country and playing in front of scouts on a regular basis. Instead, though, he went to school at Lincoln Prep and was virtually unknown on the recruiting trail.

"I remember a college scout come to see Jefferson play and having no idea who he was," Canadian basketball scout Wesley Brown said. "They were impressed by him but never ended up recruited him."

Had American scouting services been able to see Koulibaly play on a regular basis they would have seen his toughness and the unrelenting work ethic that set him apart in Brown's opinion. To Brown, who said he saw Lincoln Prep play over 25 times, Koulibaly was a five-star prospect. But instead of the hype that comes with a five-star ranking, the Washington State freshman was a little known prospect, unranked by ESPN, and given just three stars by 247Sports and Rivals.

Koulibaly's story and the under recruiting of so many other Canadian basketball players prompted Brown to reform the Canadian scouting world and create his own ranking system for Canada's top basketball prospects.

"I think star ratings really help players in the states get recruited," Brown said. "They're kind of like a second eye for the coaches that confirm if a player is good or not."

Canada's 2021 class will have four five-star prospects in Brown's inaugural rankings: Caleb Houstan (Montverde), Charles Bediako (IMG Academy), Ryan Nembhard (Montverde), and Marlon Lestin (Halton Prep).

Houstan, Bediako, and Nembhard are the most well-known of the four. Houstan, a 6-foot-8 forward, is ranked as a five-star prospect and Canada's top recruit in 2021 by most American scouting services. He's joined by Bediako, a 6-foot-11 centre, who is another well-regarded five-star prospect, and Nembhard, the younger brother of former Florida guard and Gonzaga transfer Andrew Nembhard, who is a consensus four-star prospect on American websites.

Then there's Lestin, a Canadian at Halton Prep who is virtually unknown south of the border.

"Lestin is the sleeper coaches don’t know about," Brown said. "Marlon is a 6-foot-9 combo forward that could develop into either a small forward or power forward depending on how teams want to use him. He can shoot the 3, is very athletic, and can defend on the perimeter. The one skill that separates Marlon is his ability and willingness to pass."

To Brown, Lestin is a high major prospect with NBA potential that colleges should be clamoring for. He's recently had interest from California, St. John's, Georgia Tech, LSU, and UIC, Lestin said, to go with his offers from Providence, EIC, UMass, Holy Cross, and LIU. With the right exposure, Brown said Lestin should have no trouble landing multiple high major offers.

That's what Brown is hoping to achieve with his new rankings. He wants to put an end to the under recruiting of Canadian prospects who stay in Canada.

"I know guys in the past who I thought were great that didn’t get recruited like they should have been," Brown said. "I’ve kind of realized that this is what it's going to take to move Canadian recruiting moving forward."