Explaining Georgetown's Approach to Recruiting This Summer

Here's why the expectation is for the Hoyas to be more deliberate and focused on fewer high school targets this summer.

It’s probably going to be a quiet summer on the recruiting front for Georgetown this cycle, folks. The quicker you come to terms with it, the sooner you can get on with your other summer plans.

To understand why Georgetown will likely take a more targeted and narrow approach to recruiting high school athletes this cycle, and likely in the cycles to come, one has to take into account the new way that recruiting works in college athletics these days, and one also has to take a look at the roster for Georgetown’s projected 2023-24 team.

With college athletes having one free transfer to use during their collegiate career now, this has fundamentally changed the way that many high major programs will recruit, with many head coaches choosing to focus their efforts on recruiting current college players from the transfer portal who are more proven commodities than any high school player is.

Look at Georgetown. This year’s team will have more than twice as many new transfers (7) than freshmen (2) on the roster. Last year’s team had a freshmen class that was ranked 16th in the nation coming in, and yet only one freshman really panned out— Aminu Mohammed, who is now off to the NBA.

You think Ewing noticed that? I bet he did.

Last year’s freshman class for Georgetown is representative of the fickle nature of high school recruiting, and why college coaches are going to start focusing their time and energy more on recruiting transfers in the spring and early summer, rather than chasing after high school players who may or may not turn into productive rotation players.

Georgetown appears to be following this trend now too. As they should.

As things currently stand, Georgetown has only one roster spot open for the 2023-24 season. This is Georgetown, so players will transfer out, but still, it would be surprising to see more than four or five roster spots open for the 2023 team. If you look at the roster now, you can already take a smart guess or two about who is going to get squeezed for playing time and might want out by Spring 2023.

Patrick Ewing is in win-now mode. He doesn’t have time to wait for freshmen to develop. Because of that, you can expect Georgetown to hold at least two spots open for transfers who enter the portal after the conclusion of this season, if not three spots. And it’s the smart thing to do, even if Ewing’s seat wasn’t scorching hot this season after finishing 0-20 in the Big East.

So who IS Georgetown going to try and land from the Class of 2023? It’s not like they are going to be completely inactive, right? They’ll still be hitting the road.

Here are the names you need to know for the 2-3 spots Georgetown will likely use on high school recruits.

(The guess here is the 2023 class will be another two-man class like the Hoyas’ 2022 class of Denver Anglin and D’Ante Bass, but you never know)

Marvel Allen, Point Guard, Calvary Christian

Since Kevin Nickelberry has joined the staff at Georgetown, there has been a lot of buzz for Georgetown with Allen since he de-committed from LSU. The 6-foot-4 point guard, ranked #25 overall by 247Sports, has already taken an official visit to Georgetown, and the Hoyas were recently listed by Rivals’ Rob Cassidy as the favorite for Allen.

Several people familiar with Allen’s recruitment who I have talked to think Allen to Georgetown is a formality at this point. That’s how tight he is with Nickelberry. But a LOT of programs are pursuing him, including Arkansas, Texas A&M, and (gulp) Michigan. The longer his recruitment remains open, the greater the chances that Georgetown gets leapfrogged by another (better) program.

Allen is also transferring from Calvary Christian in North Carolina to Montverde Academy in Florida, a program that Georgetown has not historically done well recruiting players from.

The Hoyas definitely lead here, but with a player this talented, I won’t feel comfortable about their chances until I see the Tipton Edits post for Allen in a Georgetown uniform.

With St. Frances combo guard Jahnathan Lamothe committing to Maryland this week, this leaves Allen as the clear-cut top target at guard for Georgetown in the Class of 2023. The Hoyas need a young lead guard to groom for the future, and Allen, one of the top 2023 scoring guards, would fit the bill perfectly.

Isaiah Miranda, Center, Commonwealth Academy

Dushawn London of 247Sports reported on Monday that Miranda, a 7-foot center from Springfield, Massachusetts, is taking an official visit to Georgetown this week. That’s an exciting bit of news for a Georgetown team that could use an athletic, mobile center to develop for the future.

Miranda is ranked #26 overall by 247Sports, and like Allen, would be a perfect fit for the 2023 high school class for Georgetown. With Qudus Wahab having two seasons of eligibility left, and question marks still surrounding Ryan Mutombo’s ability to be a starting center long-term for this team depending on how his body matures and grows, Miranda would make a lot of sense for Georgetown.

LSU and UConn are the main competitors for Miranda at this time, and the 247Sports article on Miranda mentions that he’s visited UConn four times already (his high school is close to Storrs).

However, the presence of talented 2022 big man Donovan Clingan on UConn’s roster moving forward could certainly diminish the role and opportunity for Miranda at UConn, which would help Georgetown and LSU.

Amani Hansberry, Center, Mount Saint Joseph

Georgetown recently re-offered the 6-foot-9 Hansberry, who is one of the top big men in the DMV and still developing his body. The Hoyas likely have entered this race too late for Hansberry, as Penn State is considered the leader as of right now, but who knows what Kevin Nickelberry can pull off.

Hansberry plays for Team Durant on the Nike EYBL circuit, a program led by director Osman Bangura, who is close with Nickelberry.

DeShawn Harris-Smith

Another talented DMV guard, Harris-Smith has taken two visits already to Georgetown, who has been on him for a while (sound familiar?).

Harris-Smith is also being recruited by Villanova, and the guess here is that is where he will land, but it will be interesting to see how hard the Hoyas go after him this summer, where he will be playing for Team Takeover once again.

If the choice were between only Marvel Allen or DeShawn Harris-Smith, the guess here is that Georgetown would prioritize Allen. The two players have different skillsets, but as noted above, Georgetown has limited space for high school recruits, and that could come into play here, with the two guards.

It should be noted that Georgetown assistant Clinton Crouch has a particularly good relationship with Harris-Smith.

Brandon Gardner, Power Forward, Word of God Christian Academy

This one hurts to write. Gardner was formerly a top target for Georgetown in the Class of 2023. But the dismissal of Robert Kirby, who Gardner was close with, has had an effect here, and both St. John’s and Auburn appear to have leapfrogged Georgetown here, who had been on Gardner for far longer than either school.

Gardner, with his length and defensive prowess, and developing offensive game, would still be a good fit for Georgetown in its 2023 class, if Gardner were to commit here. Gardner would be a defensive anchor at the power forward position, similar to what Josh LeBlanc was as a Hoya under Ewing. Unfortunately, he appears to be a St. John’s lean currently, and the Hoyas seem to have backed off since Kirby was fired.

Greg Jones, Forward, Hayfield

Greg Jones is a player I personally really like, and Georgetown has been in to see several of his workouts already, but have not offered yet. Because of the crowded roster, it’s hard to see the Hoyas prioritizing Jones this summer, when his recruitment is likely to garner real, sustained interest from high major programs for the first time, so I would not say the chances of Jones becoming a Hoya are that great, as of right now.

If the Hoyas were to take a third high school player in their 2023 class, I would advocate for taking Jones, a long, scoring wing who is becoming a well-rounded player. Georgetown could use a scorer on the wing, and Jones is that kind of player.

Isaiah Coleman, Shooting Guard, National Christian Academy

An electric scoring guard who plays at National Christian Academy, Coleman may just be the best player in the DMV this coming season. Kid is a walking bucket and can score any way you ask him to. It doesn’t seem that Georgetown has been chasing after him that hard, but it’s difficult to establish any leader for Coleman, so you never know what could happen this summer.

Other names that are unlikely but could bear watching: Malik Olafioye, Brandon White, Papa Kante, Ugonna Kingsley