IMG Academy has built more five-star pipelines than any program in the country, and the Class of 2028 group assembling in Bradenton right now might be the deepest since the Scottie Barnes-Jalen Suggs era. At the center of it stands Bentley Lusakueno, a 6-foot-9 wing who already looks like a problem two full years before he signs a National Letter of Intent. We've tracked a lot of early-cycle prospects over the years, but Lusakueno's blend of frame, feel, and footwork is the kind that forces college staffs to start building a board around a sophomore before he's even played a varsity postseason game.
Why IMG Academy Keeps Producing This Caliber of Talent
IMG's model isn't a secret anymore — national schedule, pro-style strength program, and a roster construction philosophy that treats high school ball like a G League development stop. The results speak for themselves. Matas Buzelis spent his final prep year in Bradenton before becoming a lottery pick, and that pipeline hasn't slowed down since. IMG's postgrad and prep divisions combine to funnel players through nationally televised events, so by the time a prospect reaches his junior spring, he's already logged more high-major-caliber reps than most seniors at traditional public schools.
That infrastructure matters for someone like Lusakueno, who enrolled at IMG as a sophomore specifically to accelerate his development curve. The academy's EYBL affiliation gives him access to Peach Jam-level competition every July, and its in-house analytics staff tracks shot quality and defensive positioning the way an NBA front office would. Few programs in the country can replicate that pipeline from grassroots to national showcase to college signing day — and that infrastructure is exactly why 247Sports analysts already have eyes on IMG's 2028 group a full recruiting cycle before most staffs normally start building boards.
The roster turnover is real, too. IMG typically loses four to six rotation players annually to college programs or international pro deals, which means incoming talent has to be ready to play significant minutes almost immediately. Lusakueno walked into that pressure cooker and didn't blink — he started 28 of IMG's 31 games as a sophomore, an almost unheard-of workload for an underclassman in that program.
Bentley Lusakueno's Scouting Profile
Lusakueno checks the modern wing boxes: 6-foot-9, a 7-foot wingspan, and genuine shooting touch off movement rather than standing catch-and-shoot only. He posted averages of 17.4 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game last season in IMG's national slate — a workload that included matchups against four other top-30 programs in the 247Sports Composite team rankings. What separates him from typical 6-foot-9 forwards at this stage isn't raw scoring; it's processing speed. He reads ball-screen coverages like a point guard and already has NBA-style change-of-pace footwork in the midpost.
Defensively, he's the rare combo who can guard stretch bigs on the perimeter and switch onto wings without losing a step. Evaluators we've spoken with compare his frame projection to a young Jaylen Wells — long, somewhat underweight now, but with room to add 20-25 pounds without losing mobility. His free-throw shooting (81.3%) suggests the jumper will scale up as he adds reps against longer length.
You can see his full profile on PrepRadar, where we track his per-game advanced metrics alongside his recruiting timeline. Our early composite places him in the top five nationally for the 2028 class, and we don't expect that ranking to soften — if anything, his summer AAU circuit performance this July should push him toward consensus No. 1 conversations heading into his junior year.
The Supporting Cast Around Him
Lusakueno isn't a solo act. IMG's 2028 group includes Amare Chen, a 6-foot-4 combo guard whose shot-creation numbers (19.2 points on 44% from three) have already drawn comparisons to recent high-major floor generals. Chen and Lusakueno have played together on both the AAU circuit and IMG's varsity roster, and the two-man pick-and-roll/pick-and-pop combination is already a problem for opposing defensive coordinators at the prep level.
Then there's Elijah Marsh, a 6-foot-10 rim protector in the 2027 class — one year ahead of Lusakueno — who gives IMG a frontcourt anchor while the 2028 pieces develop. Marsh's shot-blocking rate (3.4 per game) lets Lusakueno play a more perimeter-oriented role than he might at a program without that kind of interior insurance. That frontcourt luxury is part of why Lusakueno's efficiency numbers look as clean as they do; he's rarely forced into low-value possessions just to fill a rebounding void.
We've seen this dynamic before at IMG — a headliner surrounded by complementary pieces who raise the overall environment. It's part of why evaluators trust the program's internal competition level as a legitimate proxy for high-major readiness. Programs chasing Lusakueno aren't just recruiting a player; they're recruiting someone who has already been stress-tested against elite practice competition daily, which tends to translate into a smoother freshman transition than prospects coming from less competitive environments.
The Recruiting Race Is Already Heating Up
Even though Lusakueno is two years from a signing period, the early recruiting temperature is unusually high. Multiple high-major programs have already extended scholarship offers, a trend that's become increasingly common as staffs try to get ahead of the market before NIL valuations climb further. Programs with recent track records of developing long, switchable wings into lottery picks are reportedly among the most engaged, treating Lusakueno's recruitment with the same urgency they'd normally reserve for a top-10 senior.
NIL has fundamentally changed how these early recruitments unfold. Collectives tied to blue-blood programs are already modeling projected valuations for 2028 prospects, and sources around the IMG program say Lusakueno's camp has fielded informal NIL framework conversations well before any formal commitment timeline. That's a dramatic shift from even five years ago, when a sophomore wing wouldn't have entered real negotiation territory until his junior or senior spring.
Lusakueno's recruitment will also be shaped by IMG's own track record of steering talent toward specific conference pipelines. The academy has cultivated relationships with programs that prioritize player development over immediate production, and insiders expect Lusakueno's eventual college decision to lean toward a staff with a proven history of translating long wings into early draft entries rather than a program built around a win-now roster model.
Lessons From Recent IMG Alumni
IMG's recent history offers a useful lens for projecting Lusakueno's trajectory. Buzelis arrived at the academy as a known name but left as a lottery-caliber prospect after a year of national-schedule reps and structured skill development — exactly the kind of jump programs hope for when they commit resources to a single-year or multi-year prep stint. His path validates IMG's core pitch to recruits: come here, play elite competition daily, and your draft stock will reflect the development rather than just the hype.
That precedent matters for how college staffs evaluate Lusakueno right now. They're not just watching box scores; they're banking on IMG's infrastructure to keep accelerating his skill growth over the next two years. A prospect who's already started 28 varsity games as a sophomore against national-level competition is operating on a different developmental clock than a typical five-star playing a standard high school schedule.
It's worth noting IMG doesn't guarantee stardom — roster depth means playing time battles are real, and not every touted underclassman at the academy becomes a top-10 senior. But the players who do break through tend to follow a similar pattern: early varsity integration, standout EYBL/Peach Jam performances by their sophomore or junior summer, and a steady climb in the 247Sports Composite rankings rather than a single viral moment. Lusakueno is tracking that exact pattern right now.
Key Takeaways
- Bentley Lusakueno is a legitimate top-five 2028 national prospect based on early composite tracking, with a frame and skill package that already draws high-major and NIL collective interest two years before signing day.
- IMG Academy's infrastructure — national scheduling, pro-style development, and a track record that includes alumni like Matas Buzelis — remains the gold standard for accelerating recruit development.
- Supporting talent matters. Teammates like Amare Chen (2028) and Elijah Marsh (2027) create a competitive daily environment that's already stress-testing Lusakueno against high-major-caliber practice reps.
- NIL has compressed the recruiting timeline for elite underclassmen, with informal valuation conversations now starting well ahead of the traditional junior/senior recruiting window.
- Watch his EYBL and Peach Jam performances this summer — a strong showing could push Lusakueno toward consensus No. 1 status in the 2028 class before his junior season even tips off.
We'll keep tracking Lusakueno's recruitment closely as offers continue rolling in. For live updates on his recruiting timeline and advanced metrics, check his full profile on PrepRadar.