Three Syracuse Basketball Recruits Land in Final 2022 SI-99 Rankings
Syracuse basketball's 2022 recruiting class is one of the best and deepest in the country. SI All-American released its final SI-99 for the 2022 cycle and three of the Orange's signees made the list. Those three are as follows:
Guard Judah Mintz: #33
Guard Justin Taylor: #81
Forward Chris Bunch: #97
Syracuse signees Quadir Copeland, Maliq Brown and Peter Carey did not make the cut. Here is a look at the entire class.
Player: Judah Mintz
Position: Combo Guard
Height/Weight: 6-3, 170 lbs
Commitment Quote: "It was just a great opportunity for me to come and be able to play to make an impact as a freshman," Mintz said. "I had a really good connection with coach Red Autry and with coach Boeheim too. Everything just came into play and that was the best fit for me."
Evaluation: "He's got a lot of strengths. He's really good off the dribble. He's a really good shooter even though he doesn't shoot a lot of three pointers, but his percentages are really high. I joked with him one time at practice, 'what's it like to be such a great three point shooter for no reason?' He's a really good three point shooter and you'll see it. He's a good, instinctive defender. He's good at getting easy buckets, knowing when to leak out to get easy buckets. His weakness is sometimes he can overcomplicate the game. He can dribble too much or make things more difficult than they need to be. But when he plays a simple game, he's really, really good. Like tonight, we lost but he had like 21 (points) and seven (assists). He played really well. It was so simple. When he keeps it simple he's a five star, no question." -- Oak Hill Player Development Coach Mike Lee
Player: Quadir Copeland
Position: Point Guard
Height/Weight: 6-6, 175 lbs
Commitment Quote: "Just the best fit in my eyes. To take my game and just really be myself. Coach Boeheim, Hall of Fame coach. Coach G-Mac, that's my guy. He's really going to be able to help me with my weaknesses. To play with a shooting guard like Justin Taylor and a guy like Kamari (Lands), that's a really nice team coming in, in 22."
Evaluation: "Quadir is a physically imposing guard who uses elite shiftiness and quickness to get into the lane at will,. He can play both guard positions because of his scoring ability, but he’s got great vision in the drive. He’s adept at taking the bump and finishing through contact, but doubles as a hound on defense, pestering opposing guards for 94 feet." -- SI All American's Jason Jordan
Player: Justin Taylor
Position: Shooting Guard
Height/Weight: 6-6, 200 lbs
Commitment Quote: "It really just boiled down to relationships I built with the coaching staff. To have the opportunity to play for a Hall of Fame coach in coach Boeheim and then develop with coach G-Mac. Just when I was on the visit, it really felt like home. Hanging out with the guys, walking around campus. It was just the perfect opportunity for me too coming in as a freshman. Having a good role for me with Buddy leaving. All the pieces just fell into place, I think. It was the best fit for me."
Evaluation: Taylor is one of the best shooters in the class. He also has the ability to put the ball on the floor, has a high basketball IQ and length that should fit well at the top of the zone.
Player: Chris Bunch
Position: Forward
Height/Weight: 6-8, 190 lbs
Commitment Quote: "I think Syracuse was the right fit for me because I love the coaching staff. I love coach G-Mac, coach Red, coach Griff, coach Boeheim. Obviously that was a big influence for me, but also the love I got from being at the school. Also my parents loved the school. That was a big thing for me. If my sister gave me the OK, it was good for me."
Evaluation: Bunch is the prototypical Syracuse forward who is long, extremely athletic and bouncy. He can shoot from the outside, attacks the rim well and is electric in transition. Defensively, he can play either forward position on the back line of the zone. His length should help create turnover opportunities for the Orange.
Player: Maliq Brown
Position: Power Forward
Height/Weight: 6-9, 210 lbs
Commitment Quote: "I chose Syracuse because the school, the campus, everything when I first visited there felt like they were welcoming me. I built a good relationship with the coaches, the players and the players in my recruiting class that's going to Syracuse."
Evaluation: Brown is just a good basketball player who rebounds well, plays good defense and can finish inside. He is a very smart defensive player who has the wingspan to cover a lot of space from the wing to the basket. Also, in high school, he is used in press defense a lot. When Syracuse gets in situation where it needs to press, Brown can be an asset either defending the inbounder and then trapping, or plays back to cover the secondary player. Offensively, he moves well without the ball and can get into position for a guard to drop the ball off to him to finish. He has good hands and is an efficient finisher. Brown also sets screens very well and can roll off of them.
Player: Peter Carey
Position: Center
Height/Weight: 6-11, 220 lbs.
Commitment Quote: "My parents did not know too much about Syracuse. Of course they've been researching about it, but they just fell in love (on the visit) with the school. There wasn't a single aspect about it that they didn't like. So they were all for my decision to commit. I had already fell in love with the school through my visits and talking with the coaches, learning about it. It really just solidified my perspective and how special of a place it is."
Evaluation: "I think his biggest attribute on the offensive end, and I'm not a genius here because other people that see him play will say the same thing, is his athletic ability and his ability to play above the rim. Finish above the rim. Finish dunks above the rim. Rebound the ball above the rim. Finish it high above the rim. That's his strongest points offensively right now. The way he runs the court, you don't see a lot of 7-1 dudes running the court the way he runs it. I think his biggest strength (defensively), by far, is his timing," Shapiro said. "His timing on blocking shots. I've coached a lot of kids, a lot of D1 kids, I've coached all levels. I've never seen anybody time, the timing especially from the weak side to make the help side block." -- Carey's AAU Coach Jesse Shapiro.
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