Boys Basketball Re-Ranking

In early January, Iowa’s class of 2023 basketball rankings were released which included Northwest players Pryce Sandfort, Cade Kelderman and Henry Manning.

Junior forward, Pryce Sandfort was ranked number one. Junior guard, Cade Kelderman was ranked at the number 12 spot. Junior guard, Henry Manning was ranked at number 67. These players should be ranked higher for many reasons.

In my opinion, the rankings are off in a few ways but I am just going to focus on how they are off for the Northwest players. The first is Pryce Sandfort being ranked number one, this is correct because of how Pryce has led the wolves to a great record-beating some of the top teams in the state while averaging insane stats for any high school player. Pryce said, “The reason I’m here is from the hard work I have put in, outside of practice.” Pryce has earned the number one spot in the state from the countless hours he has put in and the dedication he has had throughout it all. Pryce sat varsity as a freshman and started as a sophomore, this year has been his breakout year leading the team. 

Cade Kelderman was ranked lower than expected at number 12. This is wrong because of how Cade has stepped up big time this year, from not getting many minutes last year to becoming a huge leader and a big part in this top team in the state is a big shift for any player, but Cade has handled it very well. Cade said, “It was definitely a big change but I always love stepping up to the occasion.” Cade should be at a top-five spot because even at the number four spot (Indianola guard, Drew Kingery) Cade has played in-game against and held him to under double digits and also outscored him by almost double. Cade is one of the best defenders in the state and because of that should be in one of the top five spots with Pryce.

Henry Manning is the last Northwest player ranked for the class of 2023, ranked at number 67. Henry should be ranked as a top 50 player because of his ability to hit shots this season. Henry is a first-year varsity player who has stepped up and knocked down some big shots in big games. Henry said, “I love the moment when the crowd cheers after a big shot, that’s what I play for.” With Henry’s ability to hit big-time shots and also play a huge role for the Wolves, he should be ranked as a top 50 player.

If they went back and re-ranked the class of 2023, Pryce should stay at the number one spot, for many more reasons than I listed. Cade should be at the number five spot because of the leadership he has shown this season. Henry should be at number 35 because of the role he has played as a shooter for the Wolves, and also how he has improved throughout the season. With the season-ending in a painful loss to Cedar Rapids Kennedy in the state tournament, these rankings will help as all of these players are returning next season.