The 2009 class – consisting of shooting guard Jacob Thomas, small forward Shelton Boykin and power forward Nick Shepherd – earned a No. 6 ranking among mid-majors by the website. The no. 6 ranking comes a year after the website ranked the 2008 class No. 10.
ESPN.com says, “In his third year, coach Dan Monson is quietly building a program at Long Beach State that can compete for championships. The 49ers hauled in a solid class of talent for the second year in a row with commitments from an outstanding trio of prospects. Boykin, a 6-5 wing type, exploded up the rankings due to his athletic prowess and an innate ability to score in a variety of ways. Meanwhile, Monson scored a coup by convincing the sharpshooting 6-4 Thomas to leave his Midwest roots to take up residence in the Big West. Lastly, the 49ers grabbed an intriguing big out of Texas with an enormous upside in the 6-9 Shepherd. The race for supremacy in the Big West is going to get interesting during the next few years.”
Reports From LBSU