In the 2022 men’s basketball recruiting class, everyone knows about Dior Johnson. Over the past year, there’s been plenty of talk about Johnson fulfilling his promise to SU. But there’s also been questions of reclassification, and worry about what a transfer of high schools means for the Orange. And we don’t need to get into the G League questions.
Instead, we’re assuming Johnson is heading to Syracuse in a couple of years. Today, we examine who he might bring with him.
Chance Westry, 4-Star Guard
Westry has been linked to Syracuse for a while, in large part due to Johnson. The Pennsylvania native is a 6-foot-4 combo guard, and the No. 27 rated recruit in the 2022 recruiting class. Besides Syracuse, Westry is being heavily recruited by Maryland. Schools like Georgetown, Michigan and Florida have also offered Westry. While the guard is a solid shooter from beyond the arc, he does most of his work driving the lane. He uses his long arms to reach around defenders, toward the bucket. Westry also has good vision to find cutting teammates.
Justin Taylor, 4-Star Forward
Taylor is a 6-foot-6 small forward and rated as the No. 82 recruit in the nation. Outside of Syracuse, Taylor is also being heavily pursued by Indiana, Virginia Tech and Virginia. He’s from Charlottesville, Virginia, home of the Cavs, so it might be tough to pull him away from his home state. While he’s a bit undersized at 6-foot-6, Taylor is a tremendous shooter. He’s not going to blow by ACC defenders and get to the hoop, but he will pull-up from much deeper than expected. If he has an open shot a few feet behind the arc, he’ll let it fly.
Roddy Gayle Jr., 4-Star Guard
Gayle recently announced his top-six with Syracuse making the cut:
Right now the 6-foot-4 guard is considered an Ohio State lean. This seems like a recruitment that could end this week. Gayle Jr. is listed as the 76th best recruit in the 2022 recruiting class, and is the top recruit in the state of New York. Syracuse may be fighting an uphill battle here, and they might have players, like Westry, that they are in a better position to land anyway.
