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After taking an official visit to Villanova in late August and Penn State last weekend, Dylan Painter had a tough decision to make. Go to the school that's been involved with him since he was considered a fringe high-major prospect, or go with the school he grew up rooting for. On Wednesday morning, Painter announced his commitment to Villanova.
Beyond excited to announce that I am going to be joining the Villanova Basketball family! Thanks for everyone's support #NovaNation
— Dylan Painter (@dpaint4234) September 16, 2015
City of Basketball Love got an exclusive interview with Painter (head over there to read the whole thing) - here's a snippet:
"I guess it’s always been kind of my dream school, and over the last couple months, me and Coach Wright have had a great bond. He’s always been honest to me, just about their plan for me; they laid out a really good plan for me.
The 6'10" Hershey (Pa.) native, who grew up as a Villanova fan, impressed many during the past spring/summer with Team Final on the EYBL circuit. That performance earned Painter a scholarship offer from Jay Wright in early August, after which he cut his list to 7 schools, with most considering Villanova and Penn State the favorites to land the 4-star forward.
The rugged forward has a nice arsenal of moves in the low post, and can also step out an hit jumpers, making him an ideal fit for the Villanova offense. Defensively, he displayed a knack for blocking shots all summer long during the AAU season with Team Final and thus should provide some steel to the Wildcats' frontcourt.
City of Basketball Love's scouting report on Dylan Painter says that he has, "ability to score in a variety of ways from within 10 feet, with the ability to put the ball on the floor and utilize a drop-step or a spin move and hook shot to find the rim."
The 4-Star big man is ranked #94 in the Class of 2016 by Scout and is a 3-star recruit according to Rivals and ESPN.
Painter averaged 17.8 points and 11.1 rebounds per game as a junior at Hershey. He also added 3.6 blocks and 1.7 assists. The newest Wildcat chose Villanova over Penn State Nittany, George Washington, North Carolina State, Xavier, St. Joseph's (Pa.), and Rhode Island. He becomes the second member of Villanova's 2016 recruiting class joining 5-star forward Omari Spellman.
This is a massive (no pun intended) verbal for Villanova, and addresses the size concerns in the frontcourt with Daniel Ochefu set to graduate. Painter and Spellman should make for a formidable frontcourt in the years to come on the Main Line.