I'm figuring out which players to target in recruiting.  I am trying to decide between these two players for my PG spot (motion offense, zone defense).  I am using the ratings that I (conservatively) project them to be at as seniors: (reds +0, blacks +10, blues +20)

Point Guard A:
Athleticism: 39
Speed: 72
Defense: 35
Low Post: 13
Perimeter: 47
Ball Handling: 57
Passing: 77
Work Ethic: 64

Point Guard B:
Athleticism: 43
Speed: 70
Defense: 28
Low Post: 33
Perimeter: 55
Ball Handling: 81
Passing: 61
Work Ethic: 31

Point Guard A will be the better passer and the slightly better defender.  Point Guard B will be the better ball handler and I am intrigued by the low post rating -- does it mean he will be better at driving to the basket? That would have some definite value.

Which one of these players do you like better at D3?

I'm going to go with B. The few points in defense isn't really that big of a deal, but even if it did Player B makes up for it with Ath. A is the better passer, but doesn't have a very good ballhandling rating like Player B. I also like the scoring potential on Player B.

I'd go with B, but I also want to know how far he is away from those projected numbers with the lower WE. If he's close in some key areas now, I'd go that way. 

A couple notes (I'm not on these boards that often, but I've had a fair amount of success, esp with guards... so take it FWIW):
* It depends on your O/D set....
1) press and fastbreak need SPEED #1, followed by Ath then D, BH/P.  
2) Man defense needs to value D higher; then ath, then speed, BH/ Pass.
3) Zone values speed and Ath much less; D is dependent on the other guys (is he the one you're hiding? You can hide 1-2, but the rest should be good at D). 
4) If you run triangle, ath and BH aren't as impt as passing; 
5) Flex needs more speed; Motion needs the best combo of bh/ pass you can get. 

In a motion/ zone, I would likely add up the BH/ Pass totals and compare and do the same with ath/speed then add defense to figure PG effectiveness. compare all three areas and see who's more effective. But realize player B, my preference, needs to be close to his projected total pretty soon in the key categories. If he's far away in multiple categories that matter to PG's, go with A. 

stew, what do you think zone defense values?  if not as much spd/ath - just def and blocking for bigs?

I wouldn't take either .. 50 minimum final defense on all my Guards unless I absolutely have to go lower.

If I did have to go lower and I want this guy as a PG. I would take A as he has better DEF and PASS (and I bit better SPD) .. all my most important attributes for a PG.

But I don't like either 35 or 28 on DEF, even at Div-3.  If you really want to win, especially in the post season, you need guards who have a minimum max defense of 50.

Like hughesjr, I don't like either.  I'd definitely go with A, though, and it's not particularly close.  Passing is underrated by many, but it's incredibly important.

I don't personally like going with a strategy that says any player has to have some benchmark rating potential before I'll recruit him.  I don't see how reducing my options is helping me win.  For example, I don't regret recruiting David Allen, not even a little bit.  But you'd have to say he has a LOT more offensive upside than either of your guys.  Still has average potential in SPD, PER, BH, Pass, and stamina.  Those high 90s PER shooters in D3, especially with 90+ BH and 95+ SPD, are serious destroyers on the offensive end.  And he's a little less subpar defensively than your guys.  I think you need to set your sights a little higher.  That said, if it's late in recruiting and you feel you need to fill the spot, I'd still lean heavily to A, as I stated above.

well, it depends, is that player B good enough offensively to be worth anything for your team? ideally, the answer would be no, and you'd want player A. FT is certainly a meaningful category, to include in these considerations, BTW. player b is purely a 2 point shooter, FT is important for him, to gauge if hes worth anything or not. if hes like a D+ ft shooter you probably want him at 0 distro even on a mediocre team. 

also, for what its worth, your goal should not be to compare players for senior year. generally, juniors play almost as much as seniors, and also, sophs can be quite important, so usually i recommend to consider players for junior year. almost all players max by senior year, but that low WE guy might be significantly behind player A in the as-important junior year (assuming he starts - you usually don't want juniors on the bench, although occasionally it happens and thats fine, especially if you fill all your spots in recruiting - which, as a zone coach - you should probably not be doing). you know your team better, a good amount of sophs even start, might this guy have to start as a soph? if so then soph season is very important too. 

it would be nice to know which are the blues because a 47 blue per is much better than a 55 black per, and vice versa.

I don't have any qualms with recruiting sub 50 and sub 40 defense in guards, I'm quite good at doing that actually I don't think either have the speed to make up for it though as ideally you would want to start hitting 80+ spd when you drop to 40ish defense., and again is the spd blue for either of them as 70 blue is way better than 72 black.

Also I think projecting blacks as 10 is too high.  Blacks I are 7-19.  but can also be as little as like 4/5 as they can turn red instantly(meaning 7 growth left), but you may not fully max that skill so those last few points can be hard to get.

I like A alot!  Especially at D3.