Syracuse Basketball: Dior Johnson is the ‘best playmaker in high school’

Syracuse basketball 2022 commit Dior Johnson is up for debate as perhaps one of the top prospects in high school hoops regardless of class designation.

Syracuse basketball fans cannot wait for 2022 commit Dior Johnson to suit up on the Hill in about two years’ time, and the out-of-this-world praise for the five-star point guard never seems to get old or wither away.

Eric Bossi and Dan McDonald of Rivals.com have published a roundtable discussion where they debate who the top prospect in high school basketball is, regardless of class.

Actually, they note that the top-rated player in the 2022 class, Michigan State commit Emoni Bates, “is pretty much the undisputed No. 1 for any class.”

However, Bossi and McDonald give their thoughts on who the best prospect, regardless of class, should amount to, if it’s not Bates. McDonald chimes in with the 6-foot-3 Johnson, a junior at the Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va.

In its latest national ratings of the 2022 recruiting cycle, Rivals.com has Johnson checking in at No. 4 overall. Here’s what McDonald has to say about the Syracuse basketball 2022 pledge:

"“I’m a really big fan of Syracuse commit Dior Johnson. Up to about 6-foot-3 now, I think he’s arguably the best playmaker in high school basketball right now. He’s also a really talented scorer and a great athlete. He’s the type of player that elevates the players around him and I think that’s a really hard trait to find in young players. He’s going to be a star for the Orange and I see him becoming the best player in the class outside of Emoni Bates.”"

Johnson, who transferred to powerhouse prep-school program Oak Hill Academy earlier this year from Mayfair High School in Lakewood, Calif., is presently ranked as high as No. 3 nationally according to 247Sports, as well as the No. 1 combo guard and the No. 1 prospect in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

He is expected to represent the highest-rated recruit for Syracuse basketball dating back to Orange legend Carmelo Anthony in 2002-03, although Johnson is getting some friendly competition from another ‘Cuse commit, Benny Williams.

Williams, a 6-foot-8 small forward in the 2021 class, recently got anointed as a five-star prospect by Rivals.com, and he’s up to No. 22 across the country in his recruiting cycle. I believe that he will ultimately push for top-10 status in the class of 2021.

With Williams and Johnson, Syracuse basketball has picked up two elite high-school players who are helping to fuel a resurgence in the Orange’s recruiting efforts on a national scale.