CJ Cox made a splash in West Lafayette this weekend by visiting and committing in a little over 24 hours.
The move came as somewhat of a surprise. Cox is a 6’2” guard out of Massachusetts that plays for Milton Academy and the Middlesex Magic AAU team. He plays with 8 players with D1 offers which might help explain how he’s gone under the radar. Of course, at this point, Painter has made one of the best programs in the country on the backs of under the radar recruits.
Who is CJ Cox as a player and person?
His coach described him as resolute. A loyal, steady kid who never gets too up or too down. He’s a defender. He has great lateral quickness and strength. But it’s his hands that really separate him. When he was at a work out with an Ivy League school, the school’s coach told Cox’s coach that he just kept taking the ball away from his players like they were on a school yard.
Cox has been tasked as a defensive stopper taking on the opposing team’s best player. It’s likely this task that got him on Painter’s radar. Cox’s Middlesex team took on Indiana Elite over the summer and lost by two with Matt Painter in attendance. Cox thoroughly outplayed Perry and was the best player not named Flory Bidunga on the court.
Cox’s visit had gotten pushed back for a while as other things developed.
On a team with 8 division 1 players, his coaches contemplated bringing him off the bench before last season because they knew it wouldn’t affect his on course performance. But as training and practices commenced, there was no way they couldn’t have started him. He’d become their best player.
On defense he was described to me as a ‘viper’ with a knack for anticipation, someone who loves to guard.
On offense he’s a combo guard with a pull up jumper that his team refers to as their ‘lay up.’ He’s worked hard to extend the range on that pull up all the way to the three point line.
Reading between the lines and inferring a bit, it sounds like Painter got another one of his guys. He will probably be the last pure guard for the 2024 class. Take that for what you will. And he’s probably a better fit, certainly considering what types of players will thrive and help Loyer and Smith going forward.
He knocks off all the boxes for what Painter looks for in players and people to join his program. He’s been with Middlesex Magic since the fourth grade and has shown a ton of resiliency and loyalty already as a young teenager.
The move came as somewhat of a surprise. Cox is a 6’2” guard out of Massachusetts that plays for Milton Academy and the Middlesex Magic AAU team. He plays with 8 players with D1 offers which might help explain how he’s gone under the radar. Of course, at this point, Painter has made one of the best programs in the country on the backs of under the radar recruits.
Who is CJ Cox as a player and person?
His coach described him as resolute. A loyal, steady kid who never gets too up or too down. He’s a defender. He has great lateral quickness and strength. But it’s his hands that really separate him. When he was at a work out with an Ivy League school, the school’s coach told Cox’s coach that he just kept taking the ball away from his players like they were on a school yard.
Cox has been tasked as a defensive stopper taking on the opposing team’s best player. It’s likely this task that got him on Painter’s radar. Cox’s Middlesex team took on Indiana Elite over the summer and lost by two with Matt Painter in attendance. Cox thoroughly outplayed Perry and was the best player not named Flory Bidunga on the court.
Cox’s visit had gotten pushed back for a while as other things developed.
On a team with 8 division 1 players, his coaches contemplated bringing him off the bench before last season because they knew it wouldn’t affect his on course performance. But as training and practices commenced, there was no way they couldn’t have started him. He’d become their best player.
On defense he was described to me as a ‘viper’ with a knack for anticipation, someone who loves to guard.
On offense he’s a combo guard with a pull up jumper that his team refers to as their ‘lay up.’ He’s worked hard to extend the range on that pull up all the way to the three point line.
Reading between the lines and inferring a bit, it sounds like Painter got another one of his guys. He will probably be the last pure guard for the 2024 class. Take that for what you will. And he’s probably a better fit, certainly considering what types of players will thrive and help Loyer and Smith going forward.
He knocks off all the boxes for what Painter looks for in players and people to join his program. He’s been with Middlesex Magic since the fourth grade and has shown a ton of resiliency and loyalty already as a young teenager.
