4-star Class of 2022 combo guard Judah Mintz commits to Syracuse

Judah Mintz, a 6-foot-3 combo guard and four-star recruit, has committed to Syracuse, he announced at halftime of the GEICO Nationals quarterfinal game between La Lumiere and IMG Academy. Sitting in between two ESPN broadcasters during the halftime show, Mintz unzipped his Oak Hill pullover to reveal a Syracuse shirt and added an orange hat.

“Syracuse, it had a really good opportunity for me to come in and be a point guard as a freshman,” Mintz, ESPN’s No. 35 overall player in his class, said on the broadcast. “I get to play with other guards that I know — Quadir and Justin Taylor — so it was a great opportunity I couldn’t pass up on.”

He selected the Orange over Wake Forest, NC State and DePaul, and became the sixth member of an SU Class of 2022 recruiting cycle that includes Chris Bunch, Taylor, Quadir Copeland, Maliq Brown and Peter Carey. Before Mintz’s commitment, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim had secured the No. 21 recruiting class for 2022 nationally and No. 7 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Mintz originally committed to Pittsburgh, but he opened his recruitment in November and took official visits to all four finalists between February and March, according to his 247Sports page. He transferred to Oak Hill (Virginia) Academy for the 2021-22 season after previously playing at Gonzaga College High School — where he averaged 16 points per game, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review — and has produced 15.2 points per game for the Warriors, shooting 53.2% from the field and 46.2% on 3-pointers. His percentage from beyond the arc is the highest on Oak Hill among players with more than four attempts, and Mintz has made 18-of-39 3s while dishing out four assists per game.

This past summer, Mintz played for Team Durant and averaged 18.2 points per game, according to On3.com, and he helped Oak Hill win 18 games in a row before falling to Link (Missouri) Academy in another quarterfinal game on Thursday. Mintz finished with 21 points and seven assists before announcing his college commitment just hours later.

Syracuse will lose at least two starters from its 2021-22 starting lineup, with both Buddy and Jimmy Boeheim graduating, and could lose another in Cole Swider, who reportedly hasn’t ruled out a return despite Boeheim saying that Swider doesn’t plan to return. Bourama Sidibe used his final year of eligibility this year, while Frank Anselem entered the transfer portal earlier on Thursday — thinning the Orange’s depth at center heading into the offseason.