St. John’s basketball hosting ex-UNC pledge Simeon Wilcher on visit

St. John’s basketball is hosting ex- North Carolina commit Simeon Wilcher on a visit. 

The St. John’s basketball roster might not be complete just yet.

After the Red Storm landed a commitment from Kansas transfer Zuby Ejiofor, the Johnnies reached the scholarship limit (13) and appeared to have it set roster for Rick Pitino’s first season in Queens.

Then, college basketball happened.

Four-star guard Simeon Wilcher requested his release from his National Letter of Intent from North Carolina on Tuesday and will already be visiting St. John’s on Thursday, according to multiple reports.

Wilcher, a star at Roselle Catholic (NJ), is ranked as the No. 34 player in the Class of 2023 and No. 4 player in the state of New Jersey, according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

The news comes after Elliot Cadeu, a former New Jersey high school player at Bergen Catholic, committed to North Carolina and reclassified from the 2024 recruiting class into the Class of 2023.

St. John’s has added ten players in the transfer portal this offseason; Daniss Jenkins, Quinn Slazinski, Cruz Davis, Sadiku Ibine Ayo, Nahiem Allyene, Sean Conway, RJ Luis, Jordan Dingle, Glenn Taylor Jr., and Ejiofor.

ALSO READ: David Jones commits to Memphis

The Red Storm also brought in 4-star wing Brady Dunlap, a former Notre Dame signee, as the only high school prospect to its roster with Joel Soriano and Drissa Traore being the lone two players to remain with the school after the firing of Mike Anderson.

There are no other reported visits, or interest, for Simeon Wilcher.

St. John’s basketball getting back in box with New Jersey program

St. John’s has already tested its luck with another Roselle Catholic superstar in 5-star forward Mackenzie Mgbako.

Mgbako, a former Duke signee and McDonald’s All-American, requested his release from his National Letter of Intent from the Blue Devils in early April before eventually committing to Indiana in early May.

ALSO READ: Andre Curbelo commits to Southern Mississippi

Mgbako did have an in-home visit with Rick Pitino and take an official visit to Queens before coming to his decision.

St. John’s would have to find a way to clear a scholarship to add Simeon Wilcher to its roster, but the idea of adding such a dynamic talent to an already gifted roster, albeit on paper, is certainly intriguing.