SUNDAY PORTAL UPDATE: Two weekend visitors, Locking in on targets, Gainey’s vision coming into focus

NC State has been working hard behind the scenes to put together Justin Gainey’s first roster. Here is the latest as of Sunday afternoon…

– We caught up with Santa Clara 6’4 PG Christian Hammond on Friday before the visit, and he explained that he’d be in Raleigh Saturday and Sunday following a positive Zoom meeting. He arrived yesterday and NC State is feeling very confident about where things stand with him. Gainey played for Herb Sendek while at NC State, and Sendek is the head coach at Santa Clara. It’s likely that Gainey knows more about Hammond than your average portal recruit becasue of this, and why he’s been laser focused on making this happen. What I’m saying is, they know everything they need to know about Hammond and are very high on him because of that. At the same time, it seems like Hammon thinks highly of NC State. Here is what he had to say to us: “NC State is an amazing school with great basketball culture, and Coach Gainey and the staff are great people.” It would not be surprising to see a commitment in the near future as Hammond has told us he has no other visits scheduled.

– We were told yesterday that Tennessee guard Bishop Boswell would be coming to Raleigh for a visit. Boswell has been on NC State’s radar this entire time thanks to Justin Gainey and Riley Collins coming over from Tennessee. Boswell might not be an elite offensive player (yet), but he’s one of the nation’s top defenders and would be a guy to help bridge the gap to the culture Gainey is trying to establish. I also believe Boswell has more ceiling, especially at lead guard. Gainey is not going to want a dominant, high usage lead guard. So the days of that are gone. Hammond and Boswell at the guard positions will be mostly interchangeable, and the idea will be for the two to play off each other instead of having a defined PG and a defined SG. I like NC State odds of landing Boswell, but this one isn’t as close to the finish line as I believe Hammond’s is.

– We told you yesterday that NC State would be meeting with DeSean Goode, and we’ve confirmed that Gainey and company really like him at the 4. He’s 6’8, averaged 15ppg and 9 rebounds for Robert Morris last season. NC State went with a smaller, less physical 4 last year (Darrion Williams), and it put them in a lot of mismatches. This roster build-out won’t be going that route. Goode is a big, physical kid who likes to mix it up, but also has a great touch and moves well for his size. He shot an insane 57% from 3 last year (on 63 attempts), and you might see that volume go up if he comes to NC State and plays for Goins, a coach whose offensive philosophy involves all capable shooters getting up good volume.

– NC State is also seriously looking at Torey Alston, and I believe they think they can make this one happen. Alston is 6’9 bouncy big from Durham, NC. He played his first two seasons at Middle Tennessee and averaged 13 points and 8 rebounds last year. He’s got a good motor and honestly is a type of player we didn’t have last season. He’s a dog in the paint and loves to finish with massive dunks and make big-time blocks. Pure athlete and a guy NC State could slot in at the 4 or move over to the 5 in a pinch. He’s versatile and could be a starter or a high-level 6th man.

– We’ve also confirmed that NC State is still pursuing Najai Hines from Seton Hall. He’s a monster. A 6’10, 265lb beast who was recruited to play football, but chose basketball. He scored 6.5ppg last year and scooped up 5.5 rebounds. This is their main target at the 5 right now, but he’s expensive, and there are a ton of other suitors for him. He’s a Garner, NC kid, though, so I think NC State has a shot here. I believe the Pack understands that if they are going to get major size in the middle, they’ll need to pay the price in the portal.

– James Scott is still not in the portal yet, but my guess would be that NC State shows interest if that were to happen. They were close to signing him last time around, and he’s a Fayetteville native.

– Paul McNeil and Cole Cloer– Both guys are in the portal, but both are open to returning to NC State. I know the staff loves both these guys, so we’ll have to see how it plays out, but the addition of Anthony Goins has to pique their interest. Goins set records at UGA with his offensive system. Lots of shots and lots of 3s. We’ll share more on this topic as it becomes available.

– Look at the guys NC State is targeting. They aren’t wiry, quick-twitch guards and springy, frail bigs. They are targeting guys with serious frames. That usually equates to a tough team that can get stops. The question is, what will the offense look like? Goins  (assistant coach and OC) gives you hope, and if you can retain McNeil and Cloer (or another top-tier wing shooter) along with landing Hammond, then you have to be excited.