University of Miami men’s basketball coach Jim Larrañaga announced the signing of the program’s highest-ranked recruiting class in the modern recruiting era Wednesday.
Jalil Bethea, Isaiah Johnson-Arigu and Austin Swartz have all signed National Letters of Intent to play for the Hurricanes, currently forming the nation’s No. 6 recruiting class according to 247Sports Composite Class Calculator.
“I am excited to welcome Jalil, Isaiah and Austin into the Hurricane basketball family,” Larrañaga said. “Each player exemplifies the exact qualities of what we are looking for in a high school recruit–toughness, competitiveness and athleticism. They are all ready to take the next step in developing their game and my staff and I cannot wait to begin coaching them next fall.”
A consensus five-star player, Bethea is the highest-ranked recruit in program history in the modern recruiting era, checking in at No. 7 nationally according to ESPN, 247Sports and Rivals. The 6-foot-4 shooting guard is the second-ranked shooting guard in the class of 2024 according to 247Sports and ESPN and the No. 1 prospect out of the state of Pennsylvania.
A native of Philadelphia, Bethea averaged 23.2 points per game during his junior season at Archbishop Wood, earning Philadelphia Catholic League Most Valuable Player honors.
Playing for Team Final on the Nike EYBL circuit, Bethea averaged 18.6 points per game and shot 42.6 percent from 3-point range. He helped Team Final to an EYBL regular season No. 1 ranking and the Final Four of the Peach Jam.
“Jalil is a very exciting three-level scorer,” Larrañaga said. “He is a sharpshooter with deep range who can shoot off the bounce and shoot off the catch. He is very passionate about the game and is the ultimate competitor. He is an explosive athlete who can play in transition and above the rim.”
A 6-foot-7, 200-pound forward from Minneapolis, Minn., Johnson-Arigu played for D1 Minnesota on the adidas 3SSB circuit over the summer.
Johnson-Arigu, a four-star recruit according to On3, comes in at No. 93 nationally according to On3 and is the fifth-ranked recruit out of Minnesota per 247Sports and ESPN. He helped Totino-Grace to the MSHSL Class AAA title in 2022-23 and a 24-8 overall record.
The forward chose Miami over offers from Iowa, Arizona State, Nebraska and Butler, among others.
“Isaiah is a very versatile player, capable of playing multiple positions,” Larrañaga said. “He has a high basketball IQ, in combination with being a great athlete. He is an elite two-way player, playing both offense and defense at a very high level.”
Swartz, a 6-foot-4, 180-pound guard from Concord, N.C., joins The U from Cannon School, where he took the team to the CISAA conference championship in 2022-23. A consensus four-star recruit, Swartz averaged 23 points and seven assists per game as a junior.
On3, Rivals and 247Sports all consider Swartz to be a top-50 player in the country, while ESPN ranks him No. 51 overall and the nation’s No. 9 shooting guard.
On the Nike EYBL circuit, Swartz ranked third among all players in scoring, averaging 21.0 points per contest, to go along with 3.4 rebounds per game. The guard scored 25-plus points in seven of his 17 games played on the circuit.
“Austin is the consummate teammate,” Larrañaga said. “He is a talented scorer, terrific shooter, possesses a high basketball IQ and has a tremendous work ethic. He had an outstanding summer on the EYBL circuit with Boo Williams finishing top three in scoring. Austin comes from an excellent high school program, which will ease his transition to college.”