St. John’s coaching staff spent a bulk of the July live recruiting period following the New Jersey Playaz Club and highly touted point guard Kyle Anderson on the AAU circuit. The Red Storm was rewarded for their due diligence yesterday – not yet for the 6-foot-7 Anderson, the St. Anthony of Jersey City star ranked fifth in the Class of 2012 by Scout.com.
But his Playaz teammate, shooting guard Darrick Wood, verbally committed to head coach Steve Lavin on Saturday during an unofficial visit, picking the Johnnies over Virginia Tech, South Florida, Oklahoma State, and USC.
“It feels good, like I’m going to be a part of something special. I love their playing style and the location,” the 6-foot-4 rising senior, who raised his stock with a big summer and joined power forward Ricardo Gathers in St. John’s 2012 recruiting class, told The Post. “The [coaching staff] changed the whole program around. A couple of years ago I wouldn’t think of St. John’s. Coach Lavin and all of them came in and made a big difference very fast.”
Wood didn’t rush home after making the pledge – he headed straight for Harlem to play in the Tri-State Classic. He said the school’s location and campus, in addition to the inroads the coaching staff has made in recruiting, is what sold him on St. John’s.
“I like that’s it’s not a real big campus, that means everybody’s together and it’s real family oriented,” he said. “I didn’t think the campus was going to be great being in New York, but it’s nice with all the trees.”
Wood, a slashing sharpshooter, enjoyed a breakout summer with the Playaz, helping them win the Duel in the Desert, Nike Baltimore Elite Invitational, Rumble in the Bronx and the Hoop Group End of Summer Classic.
Wood, who is from the Washington, D.C., area but attended NIA Prep in Newark last year, said he has talked to Anderson about joining him in Queens and thinks he would be a perfect fit. Anderson plans to commit Sept. 20, the day of his 18th birthday, and has narrowed down his list to St. John’s, Georgetown, UCLA, Florida and Seton Hall.
“They’re doing a good job,” Anderson said of St. John’s previously. “I know they are interested and I’m interested, too.”
A source close to the program said it isn’t worried about Wood qualifying despite attending NIA Prep, which recently had six athletes – four of them basketball players – fail to qualify academically when the NCAA ruled its courses were not proper college preparatory classes. The source also said Wood was recruited independently of Anderson; that it was in no way a package deal.
“St. John’s likes him with or without Kyle,” the source said.
One Division I assistant coach involved in Wood’s recruitment said he expects him to contribute immediately in the Big East. The coach described Wood as a “very good player, great athlete, and smooth in transition. He will only get better with added strength.”