When Jerami Grant walked into the Carrier Dome in August during his visit to Syracuse, there was no game going on. And there were no fans in the bleachers.

But Grant could still imagine what it would be like on game day.

‘When I walked in it was just huge, it was crazy,’ Grant said. ‘I could picture everybody in there watching the games, things like that. All the fans, I could picture them cheering, and it was something that I wanted to be a part of.’

On Friday, Grant officially decided he wanted to be a part of that scene in the Carrier Dome, becoming Syracuse’s first commit for the Class of 2012. Grant, a senior at DeMatha Catholic (Md.) High School who averaged 8.4 points per game last season, said Syracuse was the best fit for him. The 6-foot-7 forward could see himself excelling in SU’s style of play, and he developed a strong relationship with the coaching staff throughout the recruiting process.

Those factors and the draw to play at a top college basketball program led Grant to choose SU rather than other finalists Rutgers and Notre Dame. Grant, a four-star power forward, according to Rivals.com, was also being recruited by Maryland, Georgetown, North Carolina State, Virginia Tech and Oklahoma.

For Grant, Syracuse’s up-tempo style of play and success developing forwards combined to form the perfect fit.

Not only could Grant imagine playing in the Carrier Dome, but he could also imagine himself thriving out on the floor. The long and athletic forward said he can run the floor on offense and shrink it on defense as part of Syracuse’s trademark 2-3 zone.

The possibilities have Grant excited for the future.

‘They do well with long, athletic, lanky wings like me,’ Grant said. ‘And I feel like if I’m going to go there, I’m just going to be successful no matter what I do.’

Keith Stevens, who coaches Grant’s AAU program, Team Takeover, said Grant is a competitive player who is constantly asking his coaches how he can improve.

Stevens describes Grant as a versatile player who can create and exploit mismatches because of his size and quickness. He said Grant can also finish in transition and also get to the rim to draw fouls.

Opponents often struggle to find a matchup for him because of his unique skill set.

‘He’s a kid that gets on the post and draws mismatches,’ Stevens said. ‘You can’t put a big on him because he’s too quick, but you can’t put a guy that’s small on him because of his length. And then he can really make plays around the basket.’

But Grant wasn’t always taking advantage of mismatches or making plays around the basket. He was too passive at first.

Alan Stein, DeMatha’s head strength and conditioning coach for the basketball program, said Grant had to develop an assertive attitude on the court, which didn’t come easy because of his laid-back personality.

Early last season, when a shot went up, Grant would just stand still and watch. But with his size, his coaches needed him to become more aggressive on the offensive glass.

Stein said he focused specifically on Grant during games. Every time DeMatha took a shot, Stein shouted from the bench for Grant to attack the glass.

‘It took some, almost like Pavlov’s dog, it took some conditioning over and over,’ Stein said. ‘And then it would get to the point where as soon as I’d yell, ‘Crash the glass,’ he would go right to the basket.’

By the end of the season, Stein didn’t have to say anything anymore. Grant was already attacking the rim on shots and developing into a dominant offensive rebounder.

And his newfound aggression made a difference in multiple close games as his perennial favorite, DeMatha, captured a third straight Washington Catholic Athletic Conference title and third straight Washington, D.C. City Title.

‘There were several times, a couple of key points in games, where a shot would come off the rim and he would attack the glass with such aggression that he’d catch it off the miss and dunk it through,’ Stein said. ‘Those kind of plays, especially at the high school level, are absolute game-changers.

‘If it’s a close game and Jerami makes a big play like that, all the momentum shifts in our favor, and we end up rolling.’

And next year, Grant will bring that game-changing ability to the Carrier Dome.

Though Grant was intrigued by the venue during his visit, it was the coaching staff and playing style that ultimately attracted him to Syracuse.

Grant felt comfortable with SU head coach Jim Boeheim and his staff. They showed him how much they wanted him to join their program starting in the spring. Boeheim and first-year assistant coach Adrian Autry, who had been recruiting Grant while he was at Virginia Tech before coming to SU, attended DeMatha’s first spring workout to see Grant.

Soon after the workout, SU offered him a scholarship. And in the summer, Grant said, Boeheim and his staff went to additional workouts and five of his games. All that effort made an impression on Grant when it came time to choose a school.

‘It felt like they wouldn’t let me go (somewhere else) if I wanted to, so it’s always good to feel wanted and needed,’ Grant said.

rjgery@syr.edu

 

Published on September 20, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Ryne: rjgery@syr.edu