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ORANGE GET IT WRIGHT

By Rob Harrington
robharrington@prepstars.com
September 23, 2003

It took longer than anyone would have imagined a year ago, but Syracuse has received a commitment from Dayshawn Wright, a 6-7 BF who hails from Syracuse.

Wright, who played at Fowler high school before transferring to Oak Hill Academy this year, was considered a near-lock to commit to Syracuse most of junior year, but it wasn't until this week that the Orangemen and Wright finally made it official.

What Syracuse gets in Wright is a very strong, very aggressive and very athletic big forward. He doesn't possess ideal size for the position, but he has long arms and never seems to get manhandled the way you'd expect when looking at some of his individual matchups on paper.

Wright also deserves credit for expanding his perimeter game. While no one will mistake him for a wing, he does have a short-range face-up game and has improved his passing.

Syracuse now has a strong fall class that includes Wright and NY PG Josh Wright. Jim Boeheim and company now will direct all their attention toward top-10 MD forward Rudy Gay.

JONES PICKS AGGIES

Texas native Joseph Jones will play his college ball in-state. The 6-9 C/BF from Normangee (TX) High, who'd narrowed his list of schools to Houston, Kansas and Texas A&M, picked the Aggies in a key recruiting win for coach Melvin Watkins.

While he's far from being a great offensive player, Jones has an excellent frame and possesses good mobility. He does have some medium-range shooting ability, but it's his post defense (which was very good times during the summer) and rebounding that should enable him to compete for immediate minutes at A&M.

NOTES

More commitments and leanings that have come in the past several days: Top-15 senior Roy Bright, a 6-6 WF at Durham (NC) Mt. Zion, will announce Thursday for either Iowa State (favored) or Tennessee. ... Jake Beitinger, a 6-8 BF from Port Orchard (WA) South Kitsap, pledged to Eastern Washington. ... Providence has added Randall Hanke, an underrated 6-9 BF at Pawling (NY) Trinity-Pawling. The Friars hope to add NY PG Ronald Ramon in the near future. ... George Mason has a commitment from Will Thomas, a 6-6 WF/BF from Baltimore (MD) Mt. St. Joseph's. Thomas really impressed us during the summer, and we suspect his reputation would be greater had he enjoyed more exposure. ... And where there's a Will, there's a way -- or make that two ways. Rhode Island also has picked up a commitment, from 6-6 WF Will Daniels of Hyde Park (NY) Roosevelt. Daniels is a good all-around athlete with solid perimeter skills. ... Late last week Georgia added strong and aggressive scorer Sundiata Gaines, a 6-2 WG/PG at Briarwood (NY) Archbishop Molloy. Gaines and fellow Bulldog commitment Channing Toney will comprise a very tough backcourt for new Georgia boss Dennis Felton. ...