With JaKarr Sampson entering his name into the NBA Draft, Chris Obekpa deciding to transfer and both Gods’gift Achiuwa and Orlando Sanchez graduating, it was clear that St. John’s needed to make at least one late addition to its front court in advance of the 2014-15 season. Wednesday afternoon Steve Lavin’s program did just that, receiving a verbal commitment from 6-foot-10 big man Adonis Delarosa.
According to the New York Post Delarosa, who played at Christ the King High School in Queens, picked the Red Storm over Pittsburgh and Alabama.
Delarosa averaged a double-double on a team that won its second consecutive New York state title this season, and given the personnel losses he’ll definitely have the opportunity to earn immediate playing time next season. Currently St. John’s has just one other front court player who has eligibility remaining, and that’s Christian Jones.
Jones redshirted this past season, and even with the addition of Delarosa it’s clear that Lavin and his staff still have plenty of work to do on the recruiting trail, be it unsigned freshmen, junior college products or even transfers. And that’s a difficult task to complete at this stage when looking towards the next season, with many players having already committed.