High School

Elliot Cadeau reclassifies: North Carolina gets elite playmaker in Link Academy point guard

Cadeau led Link Academy to GEICO Nationals and SBLive/Sports Illustrated national championship

Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports

Elliot Cadeau reclassifies: North Carolina gets elite playmaker in Link Academy point guard
Elliot Cadeau reclassifies: North Carolina gets elite playmaker in Link Academy point guard /

Link Academy five-star point guard Elliot Cadeau is reclassifying from the class of 2024 to 2023 to graduate high school early and join North Carolina in the fall.

The 6-2, 165-pound Cadeau is an elite playmaker who was long rumored to make the move since he committed to the Tar Heels in November.

Cadeau, the No. 11 ranked player in the nation in the class of 2024 according to 247 Sports and On3 and No. 10 per ESPN told The Athletic in late April "it's going to depend on the roster and stuff like that."

Cadeau is a West Orange, New Jersey native who began his high school career at Bergen Catholic in Oradell, New Jersey and excelled right away as a freshman, averaging 11.3 points, 4.6 boards and 4.2 assists per game in a COVID-shortened season.

After missing his sophomore season with an ankle injury, he transferred to Link Academy for his junior year and led a high-major prospect-laden group to a 27-1 record a GEICO Nationals championship in the program's second year. Link Academy was named SBLive/Sports Illustrated's national champions for 2022-23. 

He set a GEICO Nationals record for assists with 29 in three games and broke the single-game assists record with 14 in the quarterfinals and had 16 points, 10 assists, two steals and a block in a semifinal win over Sunrise Christian.

Cadeau's immediate availability could be mutually beneficial. The Tar Heels lost eight players from their 2022-23 roster, had two scholarships available and neither members of the incoming 2023 freshman class — Roselle Catholic four-star Simeon Wilcher and AZ Compass Prep's Zayden High — are point guards.

Cadeau currently plays for the New York Lightning on the Nike EYBL circuit. 

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Lead photo by Nate Latsch

Published
Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports
ANDY BUHLER, SBLIVE SPORTS

Andy Buhler is a Regional Editor of Texas and the national breaking news desk. He brings more than five years of experience covering high school sports across the state of Washington and beyond, where he covered the likes of Paolo Banchero and Tari Eason served on state tournament seeding committees. He works on the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national boys basketball rankings. He has covered everything from the Final Four, MLS in Atlanta to local velodrome before diving into the world of preps. His bylines can be found in The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), The Associated Press, The Columbian (Vancouver, Washington), The Oregonian and more. He holds a degree from Gonzaga and is based out of Portland, Oregon.

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