USU adds Polish center Szymon Zapala, loses Nigel John
On the same day Utah State received a commitment from one center, the 6-foot-11 Szymon Zapala, the Aggies wound up losing a stateside recruit in 6-foot-9 center Nigel John.
Zapala comes way of Poland — the same homeland as current USU 7-foot-2 Aggie center Kuba Karwowski — and tips the scales at a sturdy 240 pounds to fill out his near 7-foot frame. His resume includes extensive play in the U18 European Championships, playing in both the 2018-19 and 2019-20 Division B tournaments. Prior to that, Zapala played for the U16 squad.
In his most recent play with the Polish U18 team, Zapala averaged 19.3 minutes per game and in that time scored 7.5 points with 5.1 rebounds — 2.5 of those being offensive boards. At the high school level, Zapala averaged 17.9 points, 13.5 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 2.1 assists, making 58.6 percent of all his shots, 8 of 17 (47.1 percent) of his 3-point attempts and 57.7 percent of free throws)
“We are thrilled to announce Szymon will be joining the Aggie family. Szymon has the unique combination of being an absolute warrior on the floor and a borderline nuclear physicist in the classroom,” said USU head coach Craig Smith in a press release. “Szymon is 6-11 and 240 pounds, and possesses great skill, physicality, and has a high IQ for the game. He has played at an extremely high level, representing the Polish National team. He has also been very well coached in Poland. Above all, he is a tremendous person with a great attitude that leaves a positive impression on everyone that he is in contact with.”
According to 247Sports, who have Zapala rated as a four-star recruit, he chose Utah State over Stanford, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech and Maryland.
“It was a very difficult decision; a lot of great colleges contacted me,” Zapala told 247Sports. “In the end I chose Utah State because I can see a bright future over there.”
“Their basketball program made a great impression on me,” Zapala added. “I enjoyed talking with head coach Craig Smith and I feel that I can truly trust him.”
The addition gives Smith five centers that now includes three seven-footers in Karwowski (7-foot-2), Neemias Queta (7-foot) and Trevin Dorius (7-foot), along with the beleaguered 6-foot-10 senior Klay Stall and the newest man, Zapala.
With the departure of John, Smith retains one more scholarship to hand out. John, an athletic three-star center out of Texas had committed to USU in November but opened his recruitment back up on Tuesday.
Image via 247sports
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