Men’s basketball secures verbal commitment from Whitney Young power forward A.J. Casey

The Miami Hurricanes men’s basketball team secured a verbal commitment from four-star power forward recruit A.J. Casey on Friday, its third player in the 2022 recruiting class.

Casey announced his commitment to the Hurricanes via social media. The 6-foot-8 Chicago native joins forwards Christian Watson from Washington, D.C., and Milwaukee product Danilo Jovanovich, who also committed to Miami Friday.

“First I would like to thank all the programs, college coaches and staff that put time, effort and energy into recruiting me and building relationships,” Casey said in a Twitter post. “I would like to give a special thanks to coach Larranaga and coach Courtney for the opportunity they have given me. With that being said I will be committing to the University of Miami.”

As a current forward at Whitney Young High School in Chicago, Ill., Casey is ranked as a consensus four-star recruit and the nation’s No. 6 power forward by 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals. Casey committed to UM over DePaul, Gonzaga, Memphis, Michigan and Florida. It’s an important recruit for UM head coach Jim Larrañaga, with the Hurricanes having finished below all the teams listed above.

UM assistant coach DJ Irving posted on Twitter, “Great day to be a Cane!” following Casey’s announcement. Casey is slotted as the No. 57 player in the ESPN 100 listing for 2022, while remaining the highest-ranked power forward to commit to the Hurricanes since Dewan Hernandez in 2016.

Casey’s timing will be important when he arrives on campus. Unless the Hurricanes land a transfer, he will likely serve as the backup power forward to junior Anthony Walker in the 2022-2023 season. With sixth-year redshirt senior forward Sam Waardenburg departing after this year, Casey will likely have a critical role in his freshman campaign.

Although Casey is currently listed at 6-foot-8 and 180 pounds, he has the entire year to grow at Whitney Young, which has produced numerous stars at the collegiate level, including Jahlil Okafor, Quentin Richardson and D.J. Steward.

With two verbal recruits and the addition of Christian Watson with still months to go in the recruiting window, things are looking up on the recruiting front for Miami.