I had a 4.5-star player come in and lead my team in scoring while getting conference freshman of the year and making all-conference first team. Best player in the history of my program. After the following offseason, he had gone all the way down to 2 stars, with nearly every stat decreasing significantly (for example, defensive rebounding went from 70 to 33). I understand players' potential ratings going down over time, as players' development stagnates, or even taking a minor step back, but my guy is suddenly a terrible hooper after being one of the most productive young players in the country. How/why does that happen and is there any way to avoid it besides going into commissioner mode and just editing them manually?

drugs

I'd suggest you send your game files via a Support Ticket so Gary can check out that player and let you know.