Cardinal hoops officially inks 3 for ‘20

On Wednesday, Max Murrell, Noah Taitz, and Brandon Angel signed their National Letters of Intent to play at Stanford next year. All three players had previously verbally committed.

According to 247, these commitments give the Cardinal a top 25 recruiting class for 2020. Murrell and Taitz are considered 4-star recruits, and Angel is a 3-star.

The Nebraskan Max Murrell eschewed local offers from Creighton and the Big Ten in favor of Stanford. At 6’9”, he’s a versatile big man that can shoot, get to the rim, and finish strongly. Defensively he figures to be a capable rim protector, and should be able to switch effectively.

Taitz is from Las Vegas, just like recent the recent Allens (Rosco, Marcus and Malcolm). He’s an athletic combo guard with a quick release and good shooting touch. His Bishop Gorman High School is a national power and schedules accordingly. Recent alumni include NBA players Zach Collins, Shabazz Muhammad, Stephen Zimmermann, and C.J. Watson. Taitz averaged 16.5 points as a junior and 45% shooting from deep, and is used to playing in big-time games.

Brandon Angel may not be highly ranked, but he has the look of a Jerod Haase recruit. Much in the same mold as a Spencer Jones, he’s a 6’7” wing who can really shoot the ball and do all the little things. Last season he didn’t put up eye-popping numbers, but there were twin, ball-dominant senior guards that are now in the college ranks. Regardless, he played his role effectively, and it’s likely similar to the one he’ll be asked to play at Stanford.

With Rodney Herenton being the lone scholarship player running out of eligibility, this gives the Cardinal 15 scholarship players versus the maximum 13. That won’t be an issue, though. James Keefe and Sam Beskind had been expected to walk-on, and only received scholarships due to unforeseen availability. Additionally, Kodye Pugh is graduating in June, and may choose to graduate transfer with his final two years of eligibility.

Should Keefe, Beskind, and Pugh’s scholarships all open up, there would even be room for one more member in this recruiting class. Stanford is still after Ziaire Williams, the nation’s 6th ranked recruit who plays high school ball with the sons of LeBron and Dwyane Wade. The Cardinal made his top 7 schools, and he’s said that he’s in close touch with the staff. Williams apparently has a box full of 400ish letters from Haase and friends.

With every rotational player presumably returning next year, these three new signees will help make a deep and exciting Stanford roster for the 2020-21 season.