Syracuse Basketball Recruiting: Nick Richards, Quade Green Set Decision Dates; Hamidou Diallo Puts ‘Cuse In Final Six
By Neil Adler
The Syracuse basketball team has yet to get a commitment for their 2017 class. Although there are some updates on that front for the Orange.
The Syracuse basketball squad is still without a commitment for next year’s class. Which leaves Orange fans – and perhaps even the coaching staff – in a tad of a worrisome state.
With the early signing period for recruits now underway, however, we should start to see a little clarity take shape. Some top-flight talents will begin to announce their decisions. Whether this means Syracuse is close to lining up its first recruit for the 2017 class remains unknown.
Here’s what we do know: a pair of highly rated ‘Cuse targets, Nick Richards and Quade Green, are
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set to reveal their school of choice within a matter of days.
Meanwhile, Hamidou Diallo, another Syracuse target and one of 2017’s premier shooting guards, has narrowed his contenders to a half-dozen programs, and the Orange made the cut.
"“Green, of Philadelphia (Pa.) has revealed that he’ll make his choice public on November 19th at his schools midnight madness event.” Via Scout.com"
Syracuse coaches have aggressively recruited the 6-1 Green, who attends Neumann-Goretti High School, which also produced former Orange stand-outs Scoop Jardine and Rick Jackson.
In recent months several recruiting services have labeled him a Syracuse lean, but the Orange faces hefty competition for the smooth-shooting guard. He has toured the Syracuse campus several times, including an official visit on Oct. 21 to catch Orange Madness.
The 6-11 Richards, from The Patrick School in Elizabeth, N.J., said on Twitter that he will make his announcement this Thursday, Nov. 10. Several media outlets reported that Syracuse coaches had planned to meet with the Queens, N.Y., native last Friday.
ESPN.com ranks Richards No. 12 in the 2017 class, while the 247Sports Composite places him at No. 14. The five-star center has trimmed his finalists to three schools – Kentucky, the apparent front-runner, Arizona and Syracuse.
Diallo, who like Richards hails from Queens, recently took to Twitter to unveil the six schools still on his list, and they include some familiar names: Arizona, Kentucky and Syracuse, as well as Indiana, Kansas and UConn.
The 6-5 Diallo, one of the most athletically gifted players in the entire 2017 class, attends Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, Conn. Diallo is a consensus top-15 recruit by all national metrics.
Not surprisingly, Kentucky is the presumed leader to land the five-star Diallo. Diallo, who graduated last year and could consider the NBA Draft, plans to make his college announcement in the spring.
Next: Syracuse Basketball: Three Questions as the Season Approaches
Should the ‘Cuse strike out on Richards, Green and Diallo, all is not completely lost, though it would prove a bit of a blow. The Orange will lose at least four players following this season – DaJuan Coleman, Tyler Roberson, John Gillon and Andrew White III – and possibly two more, if Tyler Lydon and Tyus Battle declare early for the pros. In other words, we’ll got plenty of spots to fill.
It’s understandable for everyone (myself included) to press the panic button should the above trio pass on the Orange. However, Syracuse coaches have scholarship offers out there to a handful of other four- and five-star prospects. So let’s see how things play out in the short term before entering full-fledged freak-out mode.