Fort Lauderdale, Florida—Nathan Mikhail, a four-star linebacker from La Verne, California, is rated among the finest players in the class of 2025. According to 247Sports, the 6-3, 205-pound player is the 86th best player in the nation overall, the 14th best prospect in the country for his position, and the 7th best recruit in the state of California.
He is ranked No. 5 at linebacker in the class, No. 48 overall nationwide, and No. 5 in his home state according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite Rankings.
Entering last spring’s grassroots basketball season, Darius Acuff wasn’t yet nationally known. After a dominant spring and summer, the 6-foot-3 point guard from Detroit is now ranked No. 4 nationally in the class of 2025, leading a stacked Bradenton (Fla.) IMG squad and the target of recruiting battle full of heavy hitters.
While Acuff would have been justified if he wondered why he hadn’t yet cracked any national rankings list after a big sophomore season, he didn’t worry. He knew that once he was able to hit a national circuit the attention would follow.
“I felt like I knew it was going to happen,” Acuff told 247Sports. “Back home in Detroit I was saying that once I get on that national grassroots and EYBL scene there are going to be more eyes watching and they are going to see. I wasn’t surprised, I was just ready for it to happen and I’m still just trying to stay focused on myself and not what anybody else might think.”
A high scoring floor general, Acuff is physical, tough and skilled. He can get on rolls from deep but his strength is what he’s able to do as a one-on-one shot creator for himself or others. Now that the attention is in place and he’s the top ranked point guard in the class, he knows that people are coming at him with everything he’s got and he’s ready for the challenge. It’s in his DNA and he’s been prepped for it in Detroit.
“I know that I’m always going to win my matchups,” said Acuff. “That’s what me and my dad talk about all the time, do what I can do, make sure I’m leading my team and don’t ever let anybody out dog me. That isn’t what we do back at home.
