With the season unfortunately coming to a conclusion, The Providence Crier has naturally began to pivot the focus to recruiting. Recruiting, as everybody knows, is the lifeblood of any basketball program, and Providence is no different. With the roster about to significantly turn over during the next 1-2 years, it is imperative to Ed Cooley and the staff that the 2022 recruiting class is a homerun.
Enter Ben Roy. Roy is a junior point guard from Manasquan, N.J. who played AAU ball with Team Rio. Why the interest from The Crier on Roy, a relatively unheralded point guard? In our opinion, this is the type of player that every program needs. He would be a leader and culture-setter for whatever locker room he enters, along with the fact that the kid can flat out play. Additionally, we think his recruitment is going to blow up over the next 12 months, and it is important the Friars get involved early.
If the Providence Friars want to land their point guard of the future, this is the guy that they should be targeting. Providence has tried to land too many athletes first who also happen to play basketball. It may be time to flip the script and get a guy who may not be overly athletic, but does everything well on the court.
Overview of 2022 Backcourt Recruiting
In case you missed it, we dedicated an entire article to the 2022 recruiting class and who Providence is targeting. A lot has changed since that writing of 3 months ago, which exemplifies how quickly the landscape can change in college basketball.
Providence is going to lose David Duke Jr. and A.J. Reeves some time in the next two years. Landing these two was considered a massive win on the recruiting trail, as both were consensus Top 100, 4 star type recruits.
Cooley is swinging for the fences trying to reload the roster with high-end talent. So far, Providence has offered and is in involved with the following 2022 guards:
Jayden Epps – 4 star – https://247sports.com/player/jayden-epps-46099452/
Leland Walker – 3 star – https://247sports.com/player/leland-walker-46096727/
Reggie Bass – 3 star – https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2022/reggie-bass-258429
Some others that were offered committed elsewhere, like Corey Floyd Jr. of Roselle Catholic to UCONN (more on that later…).
When looking at the three names above, you’d classify Walker and Epps as more of that combo guard variety while Bass is your traditional shooting guard.
There really is no true point guard on the above list, which may be due to having Bynum and Breed already on the roster. Thus, Roy would fit in nicely as the true point guard recruit and having one of Walker/Epps as the pairing as a combo-guard. You can never have enough ball handlers on a roster, and if anything has been proven this year, injuries happen and you need to have a deep backcourt bench should your starting point guard get hurt.
Player Profile
It is always interesting to me when you see what a guy has accomplished on the prep scene, but it doesn’t translate over to his college offers. This is how I feel about Ben Roy, as of the time of this writing.
Roy has led a Manasquan team to two Shore Conference titles in a row, an unheard of accomplishment for the Manasquan program. As we alluded to above, Roy carried his team as a sophomore against a Roselle Catholic squad that included the aforementioned Floyd Jr., Rutgers stud freshman Cliff Omoyuri, and Xavier freshman CJ Wilcher. They may have lost at the buzzer, but Roy more than showed he belonged on the court with high major D1 talent…again, as a sophomore in high school on a lesser talented Manasquan team.
In his last two years at Manasquan, his team has gone 43-1. As a sophomore, he averaged 18 a game. As a junior during an abridged season, he increased the output to 24 a game.
Providence needs to get ahead of the curve here and offer him before other high majors get involved. This is the type of player that is a dominant upperclassmen in college, and you are left scratching your head as to how he slipped through the cracks on the recruiting scene. Measurables aren’t everything. While Roy isn’t throwing down highlight reel dunks, he is still 6’1 and solidly built. He can fill it up offensively, is a pest defensively, and knows how to put his teammates in positions to score.
If Providence doesn’t offer early, I can see him be the type of player that ends up at a Villanova, Virginia, or Notre Dame and becomes an all-conference type player. Sometimes, you need to trust your eyes and realize there is more to basketball than playing above the rim.
Roy’s Fit with the Friars
If the Friars are to get involved with Roy, they’d have A LOT going for it that could potentially help land the Jersey Shore point guard. We break down all the positive factors that could sway this recruit to Providence:
- Providence would be one of Roy’s higher major offers at this point in his recruitment.
- Roy played AAU ball with Rafael Castro, the 2021 Friar Signee.
- Roy has family members attending Providence College
- Manasquan, N.J. and the adjacent towns around it have a significant pipeline to Northeast private catholic schools. There is certainly familiarity in the community with the school.
- Recruits from New Jersey understand the appeal of playing in the Big East.
Conclusion
Roy will likely never be the 4 star, top 50 type player due to “physical limitations”, but we believe his college impact will vastly surpass any high school recruiting rankings. This one is a no-brainer to us, and we hope the Providence staff feels the same way and offers him shortly.
Even if Roy never becomes an all-conference type player, he is the heady, competitive type player that all programs aspire to have.
Take a risk on him and continue to develop that pipeline from New Jersey to Providence. We don’t think the Friars will regret it.
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