While other schools are busy scrambling to round out their 2014 class, Syracuse is already ahead of the game for 2015.
The Orange picked up a commitment on Friday from five-star junior Malachi Richardson, who announced his decision at his high school.
Richardson chose Syracuse over Connecticut, Indiana, Villanova, Arizona and Rutgers.
Indiana was the clubhouse leader for most of the summer, and even visited Bloomington for Hoosier Hysteria. However, the Hoosiers lost ground during the fall when some of the East coast schools made their pushes for Richardson. He recently tripped to Syracuse when the Orange blew out Indiana a couple of weeks ago.
The 6-foot-6 Trenton Catholic (N.J.) product is ranked No. 16 in the 247Sports Composite for the class of 2015, slotting in at No. 4 among small forwards. Richardson was one of the more impressive juniors on the AAU circuit, given his smooth stroke from the perimeter and ability to knock down shots from different spots on the floor. He has very good mid-range game, as well, whether spotting up or pulling up. Richardson has terrific length, and his handle and passing are getting better. He’ll simply find ways to get points at the next level. Playing with Team Final on the EYBL circuit, Richardson averaged 15.0 points and shot 39 percent from 3-point range.
Richardson joins four-star forward Tyler Lydon in Jim Boeheim’s 2015 class. Lydon is a prospect out of New Hampton Prep (N.H.), and while he needs to get a little tougher, he can shoot from the perimeter and makes plays in transition. Richardson and Lydon give Boehiem and the Orange a terrific start to the 2015 class.
Syracuse has two seniors on this year’s roster, in All-American candidate C.J. Fair and center Baye Keita. Boeheim is also bringing in two excellent prospects next season, in five-star power forward Chris McCullough and talented point guard Kaleb Joseph.
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