With the commitment of Bensley Joseph, Miami basketball’s 2021 recruiting class is off and running. Joseph, a 4-star point guard, ranks as the No. 92 overall prospect in the 2021 class, according to 247 Sports composite rankings.
The 6-foot-1, 165-pound Joseph hails from Massachusetts; however, he currently plays for Putnam Science Academy in Connecticut.
100% Committed🙌🏿 pic.twitter.com/hHV3eNKUgF
— Benz (@BensleyJoseph_) July 27, 2020
Miami coach Jim Larranaga continues to recruit the Northeast well — with Joseph as the most recent commitment. Joseph’s future arrival to Miami will come at an opportune time, too.
With rising senior guard Chris Lykes set to finish his college career after the 2020-21 season, Joseph will arrive on campus with more lead guard reps to go around. Presumably, Isaiah Wong and Harlond Beverly, two super-talent guards getting ready to enter the sophomore seasons, will still be in Coral Gables as juniors to team up with Joseph. (There’s also the chance that Beverly makes a big jump this season as a prospect and heads for the 2021 NBA Draft.)
Miami beat out several prominent programs to land Joseph, too, including Boston College, Georgetown, Marquette and Providence.
Joseph’s solid floor game should fit nicely into Miami’s pick-and-roll-dominant offense.
The Hurricanes put together a solid two-man recruiting class for the 2020 cycle — led by 4-star forward Earl Timberlake, a top-35 talent in the class. If Timberlake returns for a sophomore season, Joseph will have the opportunity to run with him, along with Matt Cross, another incoming 4-star 2020 prospect.
(Miami also added Stony Brook grad transfer Elijah Olaniyi this offseason, too.)
Larranaga and the Hurricanes were in the mix for another 4-star 2021 point guard: Tyrese Hunter. But the commitment from Joseph may signal that Miami has opted out of that race. Georgia Tech remains a destination for Hunter, though.