Updated throughout the day with quick takes from staff.
by Andrew Sharp • Feb 27, 2010 8:29 PM EST
If not for the superhuman qualities of John Wall and Evan Turner, Wesley Johnson would probably be the National Player of the Year in college basketball this year. As it is, he's an All-American, and he'll be the best player on the floor for tonight's blockbuster Syracuse-Villanova game.
Last year, you'd probably never heard of him. He was a transfer student from Iowa State that starred as a Big 12 freshman opposite the likes of Kevin Durant, but then faded from the spotlight. So how did he wind up at Cuse?
An awesome, awesome recruiting pitch. From the Syracuse Post-Standard, Cuse asssistant Rob Murphy recounts his speech:
"OK, if you guys want to waste time, go ahead, but I’m telling you in the next couple days, you’ll call me back and say I’m going to Syracuse. You’re not going to find any place like this. We’ve got everything you want. You want to be a professional. You’ll work hard and play against Paul Harris and all these guys next year in practice and then next year, you’ll probably start for us, we’ll have a good year and you’ll go pro. It’s just that simple. But you call and let me know, no worries."
...And Wesley Johnson called two days later to commit. Does it get more awesome than that?
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