Syracuse is Kris Joseph’s dream school. It’s no surprise why.

Joseph, the No. 26 overall recruit in the Class of 2008 by Scout.com, verbally committed to the Syracuse men’s basketball team following an unofficial visit this past weekend. Joseph, a high school junior, is SU’s first recruit from the Class of 2008.

Joseph attends Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C. – the same high school of former Syracuse sports stars Lawrence Moten and Marvin Graves. Joseph plays on DC Assault, an AAU team co-founded by former Syracuse assistant coach Troy Weaver, and current SU center Arinze Onuaku was a product of the DC Assault.

Throw in the fact Joseph, originally from Montreal, could play four hours away from home – on the court his favorite player once graced – and it was a done deal.

‘That was his dream school,’ said Joe Mayfield, Joseph’s guardian. ‘That was the school he wanted to go to. His favorite player, Carmelo Anthony, played there, too.’

The 6-foot-7, 220-pound wing played every position this season for DC Assault, said Damon Handon, general manager of the AAU team.

‘He’s got a great feel for the game,’ Handon said. ‘He’s a playmaker at 6-foot-7. He’s a two-guard for us, but he’s probably going to play the ‘3’ at SU.’

Joseph was also considering Georgetown, Texas, Maryland and Clemson, Mayfield said.

Late Monday night, Joseph was still returning to Washington, D.C., after announcing his verbal commitment to Syracuse coaches and was not yet available for comment. The unofficial visit put Syracuse over the top, Mayfield said, along with the persistence of SU assistant coach Rob Murphy, who recruited Joseph.

‘Murph was real good person,’ Mayfield said. ‘That helped out a lot.’

Handon pointed to the pipeline Syracuse has developed in the Maryland-D.C. area as a major factor in getting in the door with Joseph. In addition to Moten, Anthony, Onuaku and, this year, Donte Greene, legendary SU players Sherman Douglas and Dave Bing came from the Beltway region.

Since leaving Montreal for more competitive basketball at Carroll, Joseph has flourished in the prestigious Washington Catholic Athletic Conference. He averaged around 15 points per game as Carroll’s leading scorer.

Joseph made honorable mention on The Washington Post’s All-Metro team. Austin Freeman, The Post’s player of the year, also played on DC Assault with Joseph. The AAU program has produced five active NBA players, current college standouts like Virginia Tech’s Deron Washington, and high-school stars like Freeman and Kansas State signee Michael Beasley.

‘He’s the kind of kid that makes everybody around him better,’ Handon said.

Butch Cherry, head coach of DC Assault, said Joseph will thrive in Jim Boeheim’s 2-3 zone defense. Joseph is the versatile type of player Boeheim typically recruits for his defense.

‘He will surprise people because he plays real good defense,’ Cherry said. ‘His defense is just as good as his offense is. He anticipates well, plays passing lanes well. He’s a great on-the-ball-defender.’

Handon said Syracuse is getting a talented player that can score even with a pass-first mentality. Mayfield agreed.

‘Kris can do it all,’ Mayfield said. ‘On the basketball court he’s got great court awareness. He can shoot, rebound, dribble, everything. He’s an all-around player.’

Published on April 16, 2007 at 12:00 pm