Simeon Wilcher, a top recruit, commits to St. John's

Roselle Catholic's Simeon Wilcher is seen against Paul VI during a high school basketball game at the Hoophall Classic on Jan. 15 in Springfield, Mass. Credit: AP
Rick Pitino on Monday landed the highest-ceiling addition in his remake of the St. John’s roster when Simeon Wilcher of powerhouse Roselle (N.J.) Catholic committed to join the Red Storm. The 6-4 guard became a potential target last week when he notified North Carolina that he would not be joining the Tar Heels next season and would instead reopen his recruiting.
Wilcher is considered one of the 50 best high school recruits, according to a number of sites that do such rankings, and helped Roselle Catholic capture the New Jersey Non-Public Class B championship this past season. He averaged 15.4 points, 5.6 assists and 4.5 rebounds for the Lions.
Wilcher initially committed to the Tar Heels in October 2021, reportedly eschewing a six-figure offer to leave high school and play professionally with Overtime Elite, an Atlanta-based league for players aged 16 to 20. His decision to reopen his recruiting came shortly after Elliot Cadeau, a guard from Branson (Mo.) Link Academy who had committed to North Carolina for the 2024-25 season, reclassified to make his arrival date this fall.
His reclassification, along with UNC’s recruiting of the transfer portal, narrowed playing opportunities with the Tar Heels.
Wilcher played this season at Roselle Catholic with another St. John’s target, former Duke commit Mackenzie Mgbako. Mgbako ultimately chose Indiana.
Pitino has commitments and signings now from 10 transfers and two high school recruits, Wilcher and Brady Dunlap, a forward from California.
Wilcher joins a mix of guards including Division I second-leading scorer and Penn transfer Jordan Dingle, UConn transfer Nahiem Alleyne, UMass transfer RJ Luis and transfer Daniss Jenkins, who started for Pitino on Iona’s 2023 NCAA Tournament team. He could compete for a spot in the Red Storm’s starting five.