Gardner dug his own grave. I cant speak for others, but thats why I never thought or posted anything bad against Stans in that instance.
As for Gardner being a Parade AA, I remember reading that and being shocked. Ends up there are a lot of levels of the Parade AA though, if I recall. I have no idea how he got that recognition as every other site and service had him rated much lower. The Parade award was an anomaly.
Pollard though? Pollard was rated high by everyone. ESPN. Scout. Rivals. MCDAA. Its not like one service or award thought he was great and everyone else viewed him as average. Pollard was an elite prospect. He was a legit elite prospect as he also had the numbers to back up the hype.
He hasnt transformed into a great or even very good college basketball player though. But that doesnt mean his HS recruiting status was a sham, it simply means he has been a bust thru the first 2 seasons.
Sidney was, by all accounts, an epic bust at the college level. But does that mean he wasnt a 5* elite recruit in HS and had somehow tricked everyone? Or does it just mean he didnt continue to progress and develop in college?