Daithi Quinn has always been a hard-nosed player who does all the dirty work and a little bit of everything, but as he boosted his stock to new heights this summer, it was clear he embraced who he is more than he ever did.
“Everybody kind of knew I was tough, but I feel like I’ve kind of made that my identity,” Quinn said.
The result? Quinn, a 6-foot-5 guard for Tabor Academy and Middlesex Magic, racked up 23 Division 1 scholarship offers, became one of the biggest eye-catchers nationally on the Under Armour Circuit with the Magic and ultimately landed at the college destination that fits him perfectly. On Monday, Quinn (North Quincy, Mass.) announced his commitment to East Carolina.
Quinn’s recruiting journey was admittedly hard and stressful, but ECU checked off the boxes he was looking for. He was offered during one of the live periods this summer, visited campus two weeks ago and came away impressed with the atmosphere of a bigger school – a student population of nearly 29,000 – than the others he had been recruited by. He felt extremely comfortable with the coaching staff, which detailed how his game could fit seamlessly into their system.
“They said they post up their guards a lot, and basically, they’re graduating a couple kids and one of their top scorers plays like me and posts up a lot,” Quinn said. “I post up a lot in my game and can make reads off of it, so I just thought that was a really good thing in my game that I can translate to college.”
Quinn said he chose East Carolina over William & Mary, Vermont, Iona and Holy Cross. He was looking for a specific comfort with a coaching staff that could help him raise his game to the next level, and found that at ECU.
“One of the most important things was being comfortable with the staff,” Quinn said. “You can obviously play basketball without being comfortable, but when you’re comfortable with the whole staff, it kind of boosts you a little. It makes you play better and trust who’s telling you what to do.”
Quinn opened eyes this summer with the Magic when he finished as the third-most efficient scorer on the Under Armour circuit. As he embraced his game as a bruising downhill scorer, he saw his free throws go up and his shooting get better.
As his final school season approaches at Tabor this winter, he knows he can get better in a number of areas before heading off to college next year, including his footwork, coming off screens, his catch-and-shoot abilities and reading the game out of the post.
Commitments and recruiting decisions have been heating up for boys around New England over the last few weeks. Here’s a quick rundown of some recent decisions and some to keep an eye on:
– Quinn was the eighth Middlesex Magic player in the program’s 2025 class to commit to a Division 1 school, and third in the last week. Alex Wilkins (Boston, Mass.) committed to Furman on Friday, and Dylan Veillette (Ridgefield, Conn.) committed to Merrimack on Sunday.
Ryder Frost (Beverly, Mass.), the Magic’s top-ranked player nationally (No. 97 by ESPN) could be nearing a decision soon. Syracuse, Michigan, Wisconsin, Notre Dame, BYU, Iowa, Virginia Tech and Penn State are his final eight schools.
– New Hampton guard Keyshuan Tillery – ranked No. 49 nationally by ESPN – cut his final list to three schools this week: Virginia, Wake Forest and Cincinnati.
– Isaiah Langham (Boston, Mass.), a dynamic, athletic 6-foot-5 scoring guard for Belmont Hill and Mass Rivals, committed to Brown. He also had offers from UMass, St. Bonaventure and Harvard.
– London Jemison (Bloomfield, Conn.), a 6-foot-9 forward for St. Thomas More and Expressions Elite, is expected to announce his college decision on Saturday, Sept. 21, at 3:30 p.m. Jemison, who’s ranked No. 48 nationally by ESPN, will decide between Alabama, Kansas and Louisville.
