Taking a look at the top-100 ranked NYC basketball players taking the NCAA by storm.
Isaiah Whitehead, Guard, Seton Hall (#14 Recruit)
If you are from New York City, I would be amazed if you haven’t heard of Isaiah Whitehead, the #14 recruit in ESPN’s player ranking. He is the highest prospect to come out of New York City since 2009, which was non other than Lance Stephenson at #12. Both hail from Abraham Lincoln High School and played in the EBC at Rucker Park this summer.
In his first four games at the college level with Seton Hall, Whitehead has just grazed the surface of the potential that he has. In his debut as a Pirate, Whitehead was just 1-for-10 from the field, getting the nerves out of his system and scoring just two points against Mercer. In his second contest, he was not much better at 3-for-8 for 8 points but he did hit a clutch free throw at the end of the game to secure a 68-60 victory over Nevada. Two nights later against Gardener-Webb, Whitehead again contributed 8 and shot a horrendous 3-for-12 from the field. But his team did not need his scoring as they blew out the Bulldogs by 18 points. Remember that number 18. Because that’s how many points Whitehead had in a close matchup with Illinois State on Monday. He shot 5-of-8 from the field, which shows that his shot selection was much better than in his first 3 games. He also added 6 assists. Whitehead was the second leading scorer behind junior Sterling Gibbs who put up a monster 40 points.
It is clear that Whitehead is still adjusting to the speed and competitiveness of the college game. It will be important to look at the progression of his shooting percentage and assist numbers going forward to see how he improves throughout the course of the season. Whitehead is the first Mcdonald’s All American that Seton Hall has had on their roster since 2000, and was selected as the preseason Big East Rookie of the Year. With all the pressure on his shoulders, only time will tell if this NYC prodigy is up to the test.
Chris McCullough- Forward- Syracuse (#24 Recruit)
Like Whitehead, McCullough also comes to college from the Bronx. Unlike Whitehead, McCullough played his senior season in Florida, at IMG Academy, because of off the court issues. But the freshman seems to have screwed his head on right so far at Syracuse and focused on basketball. But like every freshman, McCullough is experiencing growing pains. His quickness and stamina is not at the college level yet, which gets him in to trouble in the paint and has made him easier to guard so far. His decision making is also not at a high level yet.
By just looking at the box score, you probably wouldn’t notice that. He is averaging 15 points on 52% shooting from the field. In his first game, he scored 16 against Kennesaw State, but only made 6 of his 14 shots. He also had 11 rebounds. Against Hampton just two days later, he cooled down with 13 points, and took just 7 shots. In the Syracuse loss to California in the first game of the 2K Classic at Madison Square Garden, his main flaws really showed. He had was 5-for-9 from the field, but stumbled around the paint a lot and wasn’t able to get the basket at leisure. He also had 3 turnovers and was 1-for-4 from the free throw line. The next night was a bounce back game for both the Orange and McCullough. He had a career high 20 points, shot 7-for-12 from the field and had 9 rebounds He also played a game high 39 minutes for the Orange, who were able to hold on and beat Iowa 66-63.
It is extremely clear to the Syracuse fans that he has a world full of talented. In his first four games, the forward has shown that he can not only drive to the basket, but be a legitimate threat from mid range and be a force on the defensive end. His release point of his jumper is so high that it is almost un-guardable.
Both Whitehead and McCullough are on the Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year Award watch list.
Terry Larrier, VCU, Small Forward (#43 recruit)
Terry Larrier is also from the Bronx like his fellow top recruits but he attended the Phelps School in Pennsylvania. He is the highest recruit on the VCU roster, which has a total of 4 freshman. He too is experiencing growing pains.
In his first two games as Ram, he shot just 3-of-14 from the field. He scored 11 points in his first game, then none in his second game where he only played 9 minutes against Toledo. But in his third contest, Larrier exploded for #15 VCU with 21 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals. His shot selection was much better, as he shot an efficient 7-for-10 from the field, and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. It was the type of performance that represented the reason why VCU wanted him on the team in the first place. VCU took a beating by #12 Villanova on Monday 77-53, and Larrier was no help with just 6 points off the bench, and 0-for-3 from behind the arc. His team as a whole failed offensively in this game, shooting just 37 percent from the field and making only 2-of-17 3-pointers.
Unlike Whitehead and McCullough, Larrier is not expected to be “the man” right away for VCU. He also did not have a spot waiting for him in the starting lineup. This can be really beneficial for Larrier because he is getting time to grow into the college game. In his 21-point performance, he showed flashes of what his game could look like when he is fully acclimated to the Ram system and environment of college basketball.
Angel Delgado, Seton Hall, Power Forward (#48 recruit)
Angel Delgado is from the Bronx as well, but played his high school basketball at Huntington Prep in West Virginia before transferring closer to home to The Patrick School in New Jersey for his senior season. He was known throughout high school as a “rebounding machine.”
That part of his game has transferred to the collegiate level. In just four games he is averaging 9.8 rebounds. In his first college against Mercer he grabbed a high so far of 12 and contributed 8 points. He had the best night of his young career so far against Gardener-Webb with 12 points and 11 rebounds off the bench in just 24 minutes of play. Luckily for Delgado, he is also a guy that did not have to step into a starting role. Seton Hall has high expectations for this four-star recruit in the future, but knows it will take time for him to develop, gain some muscle, and continue to be a presence in college on the offensive and defensive glass. At 6”8 he can also become a shot blocking threat for the Pirates going forward.