Syracuse Basketball: Orange target Quincy Ballard picks Florida State

Syracuse basketball made the top three for Quincy Ballard, but ultimately the 2020 center selected fellow ACC member Florida State.

Quincy Ballard, a 2020 center who landed multiple high-major scholarship offers of late, including from Syracuse basketball, will play his collegiate ball at Florida State.

Ballard, who is from the Syracuse area, revealed his decision to suit up for the Seminoles on Saturday in a ceremony at his family’s home covered by CNYCentral Sports Director Niko Tamurian.

The 7-foot Ballard decided on Florida State over two other finalists, the Orange and Maryland. Previously, his top five also included Cincinnati and N.C. State.

Naturally, ‘Cuse fanatics will feel disappointed about this development, but one can’t blame Ballard for choosing the Seminoles.

FSU, in the 2019-20 campaign, captured the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title, produced a stellar 26-5 record, and finished in the top-five nationally of both major polls.

Additionally, the Seminoles’ coaching staff is excellent at developing big men. While it wouldn’t have proven a surprise if Ballard elected to stay home and compete for the Orange, Syracuse does have three centers on its roster, including two underclassmen, heading into the upcoming campaign.

That certainly could have factored into Ballard’s determination to go to Tallahassee, Fla. Although he’s not currently rated by the primary recruiting services, this young man has skills, evidenced by the groups that recently offered him.

Ballard formerly went to Henninger High School in Syracuse, but he has since attended the Quality Education Academy in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Weighing approximately 246 pounds, he is bulkier than other centers within the Orange line-up, an intriguing facet, given that head coach Jim Boeheim has said that he has to do a better job of recruiting prospects who are more physical in the paint.

‘Cuse coaches have remained active in trying to obtain an additional center for the 2020-21 stanza. Besides pursuing Ballard, they reportedly communicated with traditional transfer Joshua Morgan of Long Beach State and graduate transfer Matt Haarms of Purdue.

However, Morgan has committed to USC, and Haarms on Saturday trimmed his list to 10 crews, such as Arizona, Gonzaga, and Kentucky, but the Orange didn’t make the cut, per CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein.

Syracuse did secure sophomore wing Alan Griffin, a transfer from Illinois, a week ago. The Orange is projected to have 11 scholarship guys in 2020-21, assuming redshirt junior forward Elijah Hughes stays in the NBA Draft, meaning that the ‘Cuse can still continue to target other front-court players.