So a few weeks ago, I noted that the Syracuse basketball coaching staff seemed to be prioritizing guards in the 2019 recruiting class. Well, tonight the Orange got an early commitment from one of those guards: 6-foot-4 Massachusetts native Brycen Goodine.
After looking at many different colleges and their basketball programs, i have decided to attend Syracuse University in the fall of 2019🍊 pic.twitter.com/rGQvjclSGi
— Brycen Goodine (@BrycenGoodine) September 14, 2017
Goodine is an explosive athlete out of New Bedford who will be playing at St. Andrew’s this year, after spending the summer playing for EYBL power BABC (alongside former target Cole Swider at both places). At 6-foot-4, he still has some room to grow but his length and athleticism make him an ideal guard for the top of the 2-3 zone.
Goodine was a bit under the radar, with his only other major offer so far coming from Boston College, but it’s important to note that the last time Syracuse offered (and got a commitment from) a St. Andrew’s guard before he had a chance to blow up, it worked out pretty nicely. Spoiler: it was Michael Carter-Williams.
Syracuse will no doubt continue to recruit the guard position, because it’s a position in serious need of depth at the moment. The Orange will return Howard Washington and, presumably, Elijah Hughes by the time Goodine gets on campus, but the odds are strong that Tyus Battle will be long gone and Buddy Boeheim and – hopefully – Jalen Carey (if the Orange can snag him) will only be sophomores. You can expect Syracuse to continue its pursuit of Jalen Lecque, Khalif Battle, and Quincy Guerrier even with the commitment of Goodine; Guerrier, in particular, has the size to be a James Southerland-esque addition at small forward.
This is a really nice early recruiting win, and I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see Goodine rocket up the recruiting rankings in the near future. He can knock down the three pointer and explode to the rim to finish emphatically. This is a really, really nice recruiting victory.
[…] week, Syracuse got its first recruiting coup in the 2019 recruiting class, netting versatile guard Brycen Goodine. The New Bedford, Massachusetts native announced his Orange commitment with a low-key social media […]