There are six players in Utah who have signed Division I basketball scholarships, according to Scout.com.
    Recent interviews done by The Tribune revealed two more - Ben Aird from Bountiful and Holton Hunsaker from neighboring rival Woods Cross.
    In most seasons that would be considered quite a load, a bucketful of in-state talent to be dispersed among the best Utah schools.
    But if you really want to get excited, do so because the junior class is one of the most talented to come through the state in recent memory.
    This is a class that, at this early stage, could have as many as eight players sign with Division I schools. And that's not counting a number of players who could emerge in the coming eight months, once the summer season commences. Of those eight, three promise to be special: Lone Peak's Tyler Haws, Pleasant Grove's C.J. Wilcox and West Jordan's Rayes Gallegos. Those three, before it's said and done, may all wind up as national recruits, which may make it extremely tough for the likes of BYU and Utah to keep them home.
    There's almost no question that Haws is the best player in Utah, and there's almost no question that Wilcox is the second-best player. Gallegos makes his mark as one of the most electrifying athletes around.
    The Tribune, for the duration of this article, will chronicle all three players what makes them so good and how they impact their teams.

 Tyler Haws, Lone Peak
   
    The 6-foot-5 Haws is a dead-eye shooter from the perimeter. He's also very tough to contain off the dribble. That combination is what makes Haws the most difficult player to prepare for in the state.
    Everyone knows that Lone Peak is a favorite to win another Class 5A state title. Everyone knows that they have three seniors headed to Division I schools next season. But the Knights, while they would still be a great team, wouldn't have that next-level dimension if not for Haws. He was the Class 5A MVP last season and his play is warranting another run at that award.
    "He's a guy who continually works hard on his game," Lone Peak head coach Quincy Lewis said. "He's a guy who's always going to be in the gym everyday. It's great to have a guy like that on your team. He's a guy that's going to continually get better."
    According to Lewis, Haws holds scholarship offers from Utah and BYU. Schools like Marquette, Stanford and Wake Forest are watching intently for Haws, who plays with Wilcox on the same AAU team in the summer.
   
   
    Rayes Gallegos, West Jordan
   
    As of now, the 6-foot-2 junior is the least polished of the three, but his athleticism and his ability to defend have caught the eye of schools, such as Colorado State University.
    "Rayes is one of the best athletes that I've ever coached," West Jordan head coach Scott Briggs said. "He's always been a really good jumper, but the rest of his game is now rounding into form."
    Gallegos is a part of a team that features four juniors in its starting lineup. And knowing that he needs to be well-rounded, he spent all summer in the gym, honing his shot to the point where defenders now need to respect his ability to knock down the three-pointer.
    "It's been a big difference," Gallegos said. "In the past, my defenders would always lay off me and dare me to shoot. They can't do that anymore. That came with a lot of hard work, a lot of time in the gym."
   
   
 C.J. Wilcox, Pleasant Grove
   
    Haws and Wilcox are close friends, who have been playing with and against each other since they were at the grade-school level. Wilcox, a smooth operator at 6-5, has been playing varsity ball since he was a freshman. This, says head coach Randy McAllister, has been his breakout season.
    Wilcox is averaging 26 points and five rebounds per game, to go along with two steals and two blocked shots. He handles the ball well enough that McAlister can put him at the point guard slot in a pinch. He's steadily gotten stronger as his career has progressed. Wake Forest is also interested in Wilcox, as well as schools like Fresno State, Arizona State and Utah.
    "He's been huge for us," McAllister said. "We really didn't know how good he was going to become. We thought he'd take a big step this season, but we didn't expect him to average 26 points per game."