Quinn Ellis Reveals Why He Chose To Play St. John’s Basketball

Quinn Ellis revealed what led to him committing to the St. John's Red Storm.

Mar 12, 2026; New York, NY, USA; St. John's Red Storm cheerleaders and mascot perform before their game against the Providence Friars at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The St. John’s Red Storm has a lot of new players on its roster for the 2026-27 men’s college basketball season.

Only two players who averaged at least 10 minutes per game from last season’s Sweet 16 squad are back: guard Ian Jackson and center Ruben Prey. One of the new teammates they have is point guard Quinn Ellis, who is going to be responsible for keeping everything together.

An international player with immense experience in the EuroLeague and representing his country, Great Britain, he isn’t your normal first-year college basketball player. He has the upside to be the best point guard in the country with his ability to run the offense and advantageous size, measuring 6-foot-5 and 200 pounds.

Why would such an accomplished player leave Europe to come to the United States to play college basketball? He revealed the answer, as shared by Adam Zagoria of NJ.com.

Quinn Ellis had plenty of reasons for picking St. John's

St John's PG 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Quinn Ellis played a near perfect game in their hectic 4-OT exhibition win over Rutgers yesterday

The Senior guard who played last season in the Euroleague for Olimpia Milano, totaled in 13 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists, 6 stocks with just one turnover, in 56… pic.twitter.com/kzIPgrUO5A

— Arman Jovic (@PDTScouting) October 19, 2026

“Ellis said he chose to play for St. John’s because Pitino “is a legend” who “is going to push me with the confidence and stuff to get to the next level.” Zagoria wrote.

The 23-year-old point guard also has $4 million reasons to enroll at St. John’s. That is reportedly what he is being paid in NIL deals to suit up for the Red Storm after providing documentation that what he earned playing overseas wasn’t above the necessary means, which is the key threshold for European players enrolling in school.

Officially cleared by the NCAA to participate, Ellis is set to play a massive role with the team and can now focus on improving chemistry and cohesion with his new teammates on the court.

“It’s 12 new guys, I think three returners,” Ellis said after the team’s first exhibition against the Drexel Dragons, “so it’s a new group and we’ve got a lot of time to settle in.” 

I have newly-cleared St. John’s point guard Quinn Ellis as a top-20 player in college basketball. Does a good job of taking the singles in pick-and-rolls. High-feel, 6-4 guard won’t lead St. John’s in scoring, but I think he’ll be Rick Pitino’s MVP.

Sneaky-good athlete, too. pic.twitter.com/7TFPUs7RiF

— Isaac Trotter (@Isaac__Trotter) October 13, 2026

Against Drexel, he had three points, six rebounds, six assists, four steals and two blocks in a team-high 26:44 on the court. That huge role was even more evident when he played 56 minutes in the second preseason game of the year against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, a 104-99 victory for St. John’s.

Ellis stuffed the stat sheet, scoring 13 points to go along with nine assists and eight rebounds. The most impressive takeaway from his performance was that he turned the ball over only once despite playing such a heavy workload and having the ball in his hands so often.

Having him eligible for the entirety of the season drastically changes the upside of the Red Storm. With a floor general of this caliber, who can make an impact on both ends of the night, St. John’s is going to have an advantage in the backcourt essentially every time they take the floor.