Recruiting Report: Justin Taylor (2022)
There’s some kids when you watch them the first time you know they’re going to be pretty good, and when I watched STAB’s Justin Taylor for the first time three years ago, I could see the potential in him. Fast forward three years after a reclassification, some skill development and about 3 inches of growth, the 6’5” wing is starting to get noticed on a national scale from both coaches and scouts.
Taylor has had a great start to the year, along with a young but talented STAB group that looks to be one of the top up and coming groups in the state. He’s helped his team to some big wings and they’ve stayed competitive against some good teams, and he thinks they’re trending in the right way.
“It’s going well, we’ve started out strong,” he said. “We need to limit our turnovers, that’s been the biggest thing that’s hurt us, but we’re playing really good defense, we communicate, we’re sharing the ball and we’re playing really well now.”
Taylor has earned the reputation as one of the top shooters in the state, and with his long limbs and 6’5” frame it’s something that college coaches are salivating over because he fits the mold of a division one shooter. However, he’s worked hard with his Head Coach and trainer Damin Altizer to round his game out and he’s starting to see the improvements in his game on both ends of the floor.
“I know I used to be labeled, and still probably am labeled, as a shooter,” he said. “I think I have expanded my game a lot more to be able to score at all three levels, play d and be a playmaker as well.”
Taylor has been on the radar of college coaches shortly after he stepped on the court as a high school player, and holds early offers from Liberty, ODU, JMU and George Washington. He says he plans on taking unofficial visits to Penn State, Maryland, UVA and Richmond among other schools here shortly. He’s also recently been ranked nationally by a few services.
As he continues to improve, he thinks that he’ll become an even harder guy to guard. One thing he thinks he can do better than people think is the ability to make people better and make the right play within the flow of the game.
“I think my playmaking ability, especially off screens, is my most underrated part, hitting the roll man off pick-and-rolls and just making plays in general.”
While he’s getting there, Taylor isn’t satisfied and says he’s looking to continue to get better. He’s been working with Altizer a lot over the past year to improve his ball handling, and on this group it’s something he needs to do as the one thing they lack is depth at the ball handling positions.
“I think I need to improve on my ball handling, handling pressure more and being stronger with the ball. I think it’s pretty good now but expanding on that.”
As far as when it comes time, Taylor isn’t interested in working his way into a program because it’s something he really hasn’t had to do. He says as he continues to visit and learn about the different programs that are recruiting him, he wants to find somewhere he can come in and play immediately.
“I want to come in and make an impact right away whether it be on offense or defense. I can bring shooting, playmaking, scoring and more.”
Taylor and his teammates are going to be a very good group moving forward, and it would be smart to check them out before they all blow up. With a number of freshman starting and some strong seniors as well, they’re looking like a tough out for anyone, and they’re just getting started.