Justin Taylor Discusses Interest in Syracuse, Relationship with Coaches

The highly touted wing is one of Syracuse basketball's top targets in the 2022 class.

One of Syracuse basketball's top targets in the 2022 class is Charlottesville (VA) St. Anne's-Belfield wing Justin Taylor. Syracuse has been recruiting Taylor for quite a while, led by assistant Gerry McNamara. McNamara and Taylor have developed a strong relationship during that time.

"We basically talk every day now or every other day," Taylor said. "Most of the time it's just texting back and forth. It could be about anything. What's going on in life right now, our season, really just about their season too and how well they think I can fit into the system and make an impact right away. He Facetimes me a pretty good amount. We've also done a Zoom call. 

"At the start of the school year we did a Zoom call with the whole staff. With GMac, it's really just building a relationship. To this point, it's really gotten comfortable talking to him about anything."

The Zoom call was an opportunity for Taylor to speak with head coach Jim Boeheim and get to know him on a more personal level. It definitely left an impression. 

"His resume speaks for itself, but actually being able to talk to him and seeing him face to face was really awesome to get to know him better and get to know the program better," Taylor said. "I think the Zoom calls help with not being able to go to the campus and actually talk to them. The Zoom calls actually give me an opportunity to see the program in depth. See how well they do with guys similar to me. See how I could do in the future whether it's professionally or under him. 

"It really just shows the brotherhood and the community they have there. It's not just like you're there for the couple years you're there. It's a family so you always stick around. You can tell coach Boeheim is always going to be there for his players in the future."

While in person traditional unofficial or official visits are currently not permitted by the NCAA, prospects are allowed to travel to a campus and walk around on their on volition as long as there is no face to face contact with the coaching staff. Taylor did just that recently. 

"Earlier this school year I was able to go down there to see the campus," Taylor said. "It was cool to actually be able to see the campus and the Carrier Dome. Not inside but outside. See what life is like there. They also sent me different videos of inside their practice facilities and campus and everything like that.

"It was me, my mom and my sister (on the visit). We were on break from school so we wanted to be able to get down there in case we aren't able to take visits before my end of high school."

One of the reasons the Syracuse coaches have prioritized Taylor is because of how his skill set fits into their system on both ends of the floor. In fact, they believe he can have similar to success to some recent stars that have had a lot of success with the Orange. 

"They kind of show me videos of how well I compare to players that have been there in past years," Taylor said. "How much success they've had there. They've talked about Elijah Hughes who just got drafted, Malachi Richardson, different guys like that who have had a lot of success. Just how much freedom they have in the system. How they're allowed to score the ball and be free with what they do on the court.

"They really like how I can shoot the ball and score on all three levels. My length for the defense, the 2-3 zone is really important there. They think I can make an impact right away as a freshman."

Taylor is still taking his time in the recruiting process, but admits that Syracuse has made an early impression. 

"They're definitely one of the top schools," Taylor said. "I haven't narrowed my list down or anything like that, but as far as schools I've built the best connection with, as far as where I could see myself at, they're definitely up there with my list of schools."

The highly coveted prospect holds offers from Indiana, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Butler, Marquette, Maryland, NC State and several others in addition to Syracuse. He has a timeframe in his mind in order to get to a final decision. 

"I think I could see myself narrowing down my list in the spring or start of the summer," Taylor said. "Then probably have a final decision before my senior season. I could see it maybe at the end of summer for a final decision going into the fall. 

"I just want to take my time with the process. I don't want to rush anything and just make sure it's the right decision for me. That takes time. I'll see where I'm at this summer and go from there."