St. John’s roster is now basically set, and the team believes the last piece solves a major hole on the roster.
Rick Pitino landed a verbal commitment from Kansas transfer Zuby Ejiofor on Monday following his official visit, a big man who fills a need as the team’s potential starting power forward.
“We came to St. John’s and we got a chance to meet Rick Pitino and the coaching staff, and we fell in love with them,” Ejiofor told The Post.
“Everything just felt right. … The whole coaching staff saw potential in me. I liked everything I heard, and I thought St. John’s would be a perfect fit having the opportunity to play on a big stage. [Sunday] night me and my family had a talk. We just felt Coach Pitino can get me to that next level.”
The 6-foot-9, 240-pound Texan was a top-50 recruit out of high school who played minimally in his one year on a loaded Kansas team, averaging 1.2 points and 1.7 rebounds in 5.8 minutes per game.
Injuries slowed down his development somewhat.
High-major schools were lining up for him once he entered the transfer portal.
He took an official visit to Villanova and was also scheduled to see TCU and national champion runner-up San Diego State.
Kentucky recently expressed interest.
He opted for St. John’s, though.
A big-time prospect in high school, Ejiofor was a TABC 6A All-State selection his senior year at Garland High School in Texas and averaged 21.7 points, 13.0 rebounds, 3.9 blocked shots and 1.9 steals per game.
He initially chose Kansas over Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and TCU.
“Zuby adds frontcourt size, athleticism and some toughness on the interior,” said Eric Bossi, a national recruiting analyst for 247Sports.com. “He’ll need a little time to get his feet under him and expand his role, but he has big upside once he develops some confidence and finds his footing offensively… He has the tools to be a very good rebounder and paint finisher. He just needs time to develop.”
Once he entered the portal, Ejiofor included St. John’s on his list for two reasons: Pitino and the opportunity to make an impact immediately.
Recent addition Cruz Davis, who played for Pitino at Iona University and is a friend of Ejiofor’s, reached out to him about considering the Big East school.
Cruz told him that he was needed and described his experience playing for Pitino.
“It was a big factor, in terms of St. John’s being one of the schools I visited,” Ejiofor said, referring to Pitino. “I’ve seen the amount of high-level guys he’s trained over the years, the guys he’s taken to the pros.
“One of the things I like about him is he’s stayed in contact with a lot of them, not only on the court but off the court as well. I know he’s one of the greatest coaches out there. I wanted to have the opportunity to be coached by him and see how good I can possibly be.”
St. John’s badly needed to add a player capable of backing up standout center Joel Soriano and playing next to him if the Red Storm chooses to go big.
Ejiofor will battle Iona transfer Quinn Slazinski as the starting power forward, though St. John’s could also opt to go small with wings RJ Luis and Glenn Taylor Jr. starting at the three and four.
But the opportunity is there for Ejiofor to be the guy at that spot.
On his visit, Ejifor worked out for Pitino and impressed not only with his athleticism, but his shooting ability. He didn’t get to showcase that much at Kansas in a reserve role.
But Ejiofor is confident that he can make a difference for the Johnnies both in the paint and on the perimeter.
“That’s something I’ve been working on my entire life with my pops,” he said. “Kansas played differently with what their bigs are allowed to do. With Kansas, we would just set screens and roll to the rim. The 3-point shot, the mid-range, is something I’ve been working my entire life. I showed it here in a little workout session, and they liked what they saw.”
In the span of 55 days, St. John’s added 11 players, a group heavy with shooters that most experts believe will be a projected NCAA Tournament team.
The crown jewel is Jordan Dingle, the Ivy League Player of the Year who was second in the nation in scoring. It includes two high-upside freshmen in Ejiofor and Luis, and loads of experience in seniors such as Slazinski, Daniss Jenkins of Iona and Nahiem Alleyne of UConn.