By SAM LANCE
INDIANAPOLIS — Little guards have taken the college basketball world by storm as of late. Look at guys like Markquis Nowell of Kansas State, who led the Wildcats to the Elite Eight two years ago, or Braden Smith, who helped Purdue reach the national championship game this past season.
One player that fits the mold in the AAU scene is four-star point guard Danny Carbuccia of the PSA Cardinals Nike EYBL AAU program and Archbishop Stepinac High School (NY). The 5-foot-9, 172-pound Class of 2025 guard may not be tall, but he plays big.
“I always live by the motto ‘heart over height,'” Carbuccia said. “I’m just out there. I don’t worry about size at the end of the day. I just play to my strengths and do what I do out on the court.”
Through four games at Nike EYBL Session 3 in Indianapolis, Carbuccia posted 5.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game to help the PSA Cardinals to a 3-1 record. He also grabbed seven steals with four coming in one game.
Carbuccia updated his recruitment in an exclusive interview with ZAGSBLOG.com and said Seton Hall, Xavier, Auburn and Maryland were recruiting him hardest. Below is his break down of each school.
Seton Hall: “I’ve been to a couple of their games and I just like the way they play. They are very guard heavy so I like that. And they play a lot of defense, so I like that too. My relationship with Shaheen [Holloway] is really good. I speak to him as much as I can. He tells me to come to the games. He comes to my games. He’s been seeing me for a minute. So it’s a good relationship.”
Xavier: “I speak to them often. I spoke to their offensive coordinator. They told me all their stuff, how they run, how they like to play. And I watched a couple of their games too during the season. So it’s a pretty good relationship. Sean Miller is a great coach. He’s been around. I just like the way they play, stuff like that.”
Auburn: “I mean, they’re a top program. A lot of guard heavy, they’ve had good guards recently. So I just like the way they play. Fast-paced. And it’s in a great conference.” Carbuccia said he hasn’t heard anything from head coach Bruce Pearl. He’s spoken to an assistant.
Maryland: “Just fast-paced. Guard heavy. You know, hard, gritty, tough basketball. Great conference as well.” Talking to an assistant there as well.
Seton Hall was represented by assistant coach Rasheen Davis in Indianapolis. Both Miller and Pearl were in attendance multiple days of the session.
Carbuccia later stated he is also hearing from Dayton. The guard has not taken any visits yet, official or unofficial. He is playing in the 17u FIBA World Cup in Istanbul, Turkey from June 29-July 7.
“That experience is great,” Carbuccia said. “It teaches you a whole different atmosphere of basketball playing against overseas guys and stuff like that. It teaches you and I think it polished my game a little bit, knowing how to play different ways, different styles.”
Peach Jam follows soon after from July 13th-21st. When all of that is said and done, Carbuccia will then look to set up some visits before the school year.
Carbuccia said Seton Hall has been recruiting him the longest and since they’ve had the new coaching staff with Holloway.
The guard is ranked the No. 117 player in the country per 247Sports and the No. 5 player in the state of New York. Carbuccia describes himself as a high-IQ basketball player.
“I’m a playmaker on the floor, a leader,” Carbuccia said. “I’m going to take after coach, do whatever needs to be done to get a win. I can guard and make plays, get others involved, get my teammates involved. I get the ball where it needs to be, stuff like that.”
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