New SMU coach Larry Brown continues to reshape his roster with the addition of former Arizona point guard Josiah Turner.
“It’s a great fit for me,” Turner told Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com.
SNY.tv reported Monday that Turner was headed to SMU assuming the school got past his legal troubles.
Turner, 19, was arrested last week on “extreme DUI suspicion,” blowing a 0.15 or 0.16, per Bruce Pascoe of the Arizona Daily Star.
He was also suspended twice last year by Arizona head coach Sean Miller for violations of team rules.
He must sit out a year per NCAA transfer regulations and then will have three years of eligibility beginning in 2013 when the school joins the Big East.
“He’s outstanding,” New York recruiting expert Tom Konchalski told SNY.tv. “You can’t stay in front of him. He’s a tremendous penetrating guard with great athleticism and he’s going to learn how to play the game under Larry Brown. It’s a good deal for him that way and it’s certainly a good deal for SMU.
“Talent-wise he doesn’t have a great outside shot. There were questions about him in the past. But talent-wise there are not many better guards in college basketball better than Josiah Turner.”
Turner has clearly had a troubled recent past, but Brown is willing to take the risk in order to compete going forward.
As first reported by SNY.tv, SMU has also expressed interest in uncommitted 2012 wing Savon Goodman, who is visiting Seton Hall today.
“I guess he figured after coaching Allen Iverson no one is that tough to coach,” Konchalski said in reference to Turner.
“I’m sure when he was with the Sixers he was always shaking his head about Allen Iverson. Even though they tried to show they were on good terms, it was difficult.
“The thing is you want to be successful so you take chances. He wants to be successful. He wants to coach and wnats to be successful. He knows SMU, as good as a coach as he is, unless they get good players they’re not going to win.”
