Recruiting Report: AJ Sawyers (2018)
We got a good look at St. Paul’s senior AJ Sawyers, at the MAIT last week, and thought he played a solid game on both ends of the floor against St. Andrew’s. One of two important seniors in the back court for the Crusaders, he looks poised to perform at a high level this season.
“I️ would say I️m a scoring combo,” Saywers said to summarize his overall game. “I️ like getting to the basket and creating for my teammates. I’m also a catch and shoot shooter.”
While playing with York Thunder for AAU during the summer, Sawyers became more comfortable handling the ball in a lead guard role. He also mentioned working a lot on his pull up jumper during that time.
“In the last 12 months I️ have improved a lot with my ball handling and shooting. My athleticism has also improved a lot,” Sawyers explained. “I️ need to work on my ball handling more so I️ can be more comfortable playing the 1. Also I️ need to work on shooting off the dribble too.”
Sawyers will be a leader that other players look up to this year. They also look to him to make plays, and to score the ball.
“When I play people don’t usually notice how hard I️ play,” Sawyers stated. “I️ like pressuring the ball, and getting steals to make easy fast breaks. I️ like playing fast and speeding up my opponent.”
After getting a taste of the MIAA B Championship last season, Sawyers says his goal is to win another with my team, and after high school, play in college. His academic record should assist with the latter. Sawyers says he carries a 3.3 GPA, and a 1220 SAT score.
“Mostly d3’s are recruiting me right now. Widener, Bard, Christopher Newport, King’s, Marymount, and Utica are recruiting me,” he said. “I️ think I️ can bring my toughness and scoring mentality to college. I️ also think I️ can be a good playmaker and leader in college.”