2024-25 was a mess for ACC basketball as a whole, with just four teams reaching the NCAA Tournament. Outside of Duke, Clemson, Louisville and North Carolina (who barely made it in the Big Dance), the rest of the league resembled a mid-major conference more than the powerhouse fans have become accustomed to. Miami basketball was the worst of the bunch just two years removed from reaching a Final Four.

Longtime head coach Jim Larranaga even retired during the season, leaving Miami without much direction to go with its lack of talent. The Hurricanes finished in dead last in the ACC with a 3-17 conference record and a 7-24 overall mark.

At the end of the season, Miami hired Duke assistant Jai Lucas as the program's new head coach and he has been doing an excellent job on the recruiting trail. On Monday, he landed a huge commitment from five-star recruit Shelton Henderson, according to Joe Tipton of On3 Sports.

“BREAKING: Top-20 recruit Shelton Henderson, a former Duke signee, has committed to Miami, he told @On3Recruits,” Tipton reported on X, formerly Twitter. “The 6-6 small forward was recruited to Duke by former assistant Jai Lucas, who’s now the head coach at Miami.”

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Henderson was one of many top recruits in that Duke class that Lucas helped bring in, but he is now the prize of the class for the Hurricanes in year one under the former Texas point guard. He will be one of the most talented players in the ACC and will certainly have a big role on a team that is desperate to get back into the NCAA Tournament.

Lucas has also done very well in the transfer portal this offseason. Miami has landed commitments from Michigan point guard Tre Donaldson, Indiana leading scorer Malik Reneau and TCU standout Ernest Udeh Jr. Tru Washington, a defensive ace from New Mexico, is also coming to Coral Gables.

All of those additions will give Miami one of the most talented rosters in the ACC coming into 2025-26. Whether that translates to the court remains to be seen, but Lucas has this program in a much better spot than it was in last season.