Position-aware evaluation for freshmen through seniors. Honest tier scoring across D1, D2, D3, NAIA, and JUCO. Parent-approved outreach to the right coach.
Basketball isn't one evaluation — a D1 point guard and a D1 center aren't built from the same blueprint. PathPlay scores against position-specific tiers, so the tier you land in matches who you actually are on the court.
Floor generals grade on vision and lead-the-break film more than raw height. The 6-0+ D1 floor sits well above the 5-10 NAIA range — a sub-6-0 PG reads as a fit at D3/NAIA but a stretch at D1 unless the handle and shooting splits are verified.
Three-level scoring is the wedge. D1 twos carry a 6-3+ build plus pull-up shooting; D3/NAIA scoring opens up at 6-1 when the shooting splits and 3-point volume are documented on film.
Wings grade on the size-and-handle blend. Versatility defines the D3/NAIA read more than a single measurable — a 6-4 SF with verified point-forward reps is a fit where a 6-4 SF without handle reads as a stretch.
Size-and-skills blend — D1 fours sit at a 6-8 floor; D3/NAIA thresholds drop to 6-4 when there's plus-bounce and stretch-four film on the resume. Mobility grades the projection more than weight alone.
True back-to-the-basket D1 fives anchor a different eval than rim-running D3 and JUCO NAIA archetypes. Mobility is the projection input — a 6-10 C with verified lateral quickness reads as a fit where a 6-10 C without it reads as a reach.
Basketball timelines run on AAU / July live periods and signing windows, not on a single calendar. D1 starts evaluating two years out with sophomore spring offers, D2 + D3 wait until junior year, and NAIA + JUCO evaluating genuinely picks up across the junior summer. The engine below applies a grad-year modifier so the tier score reflects the realistic window, not the artificial one.
The earliest serious window. Coaches start tracking multi-year AAU film, attending shoe-circuit events, and tabbing sophomore tape for the next cycle. If your grad year is two years out, the engine treats you as one tier lower — yours to climb.
D2 recruiting opens in earnest around the junior spring showcase circuit plus the July live periods that follow. A junior-year form spike, verified height, or testing update moves the score with it.
D3 and NAIA both run a junior-summer window for first-touch outreach. AAU / live-period events concentrate exposure here — walk-on slots, academic spots, and late rising juniors all overlap.
NAIA programs run a longer window — junior summer through senior fall — and the academic profile (core GPA) carries the conversation more than the vertical jump. NLI signing opens in November and runs through April with an early signing window in mid-November.
PathPlay's basketball placement engine reads your height, vertical jump, lane agility / shuttle, GPA, core GPA, and grad year against per-tier rule tables — and applies a position override on the threshold when your position allows it.
Every tier (D1, D2, D3, NAIA, JUCO) has a distinct rule set with required gates and weighted metrics; the engine returns a confidence rating per tier (Strong, Likely, Stretch, Reach) so the recommendation is honest about where the fit is real and where it's a reach.
Position-specific thresholds: skill positions (PG, SG, SF) grade on shooting splits + handle film, bigs (PF, C) grade on size + mobility — so a 6-2 vertical reads as a fit at PG-D3 and a miss at D1-C. That's the differentiation, not a stylistic preference.