Saturday, Syracuse basketball extended an offer to 2018 big man Dimon Carrigan, per Pat Lawless on Twitter.
Dimon Carrigan, a class of 2018 Big Man playing for BABC (MA), has picked up offers from Texas, Clemson and Syracuse.
— Pat Lawless (@PatLawless_) July 15, 2017
Carrigan is a 6-9, four-star recruit from Lynn, Mass., who plays at Woodstock Academy in Connecticut and the BABC in Massachusetts. Syracuse already has ¬†a 6-9, 2018 commit in Darius Bazley, but he is viewed as more of a wing player while Carrigan is known for his work inside. Carrigan also has offers from ACC schools Miami, Georgia Tech and Clemson as well as Texas, Wichita State, Mike Hopkins’ Washington and a number of other programs.
Carrigan is a force on both offense and defense. He can score from anywhere close to the basket and make his own points out of nothing. Teammates often just throw him the ball, back to the basket, and let him go to work. On defense, he’s always a threat to get a block. In front of you, helping from the weak side, or even from behind if a driving guard has him beat, Carrigan is long enough to get a hand on any shot. He’d be perfect to play in the middle of SU’s 2-3 zone.
Carrigan still has a lot of time to make a decision, but if he does choose Orange it couuld be huge for SU basketball. When was the last time the Orange had a legitimate scoring option inside? Rakeem Christmas? He was great in his senior season, but could really only work from within five feet and didn’t create many points for himself. He was a defensive-minded player who was forced into an offensive role. Tyler Lydon played inside, but he was always considered a stretch four who, again, was forced to step into the middle of the 2-3. C.J. Fair? Pretty much the same story.
Now, there’s no guarantee Carrigan wouldn’t be another one of those players. He’s 6-9, and only listed at 215 pounds on 247Sports.com. If Jim Boeheim wanted him to be a force in the middle on offense, he’d need to pick up some weight. There’s just as good of a possibility, though, that Boeheim would want him to keep the versatility to move faster on defense. Either way, there’s no way to tell if he would be able to compete with the best rebounders in the ACC without putting him out there. It takes more than just size and athleticism to get boards in the best conference in the country. You need to know what you’re doing down there, and Carrigan has never played against that level of competition.
Dimon Carrigan is the typical Syracuse basketball target. He’s long for his size and has the promise to be a star. But if he comes to the Carrier Dome, he could be the first true inside scorer the Orange has had in a long time.
Posted: Nathan Dickinson
