Cortez Sutton Update
Cortez Sutton might be headed to St. Bonaventure next fall, but the 6-7, 200 pound small forward from Coffeyville C.C. in Kansas did not make the cut for his junior college basketball team this winter.
In the Kansas junior college basketball ranks, each team is permitted to play only six out of state players. You can have more than six on scholarship, but you can't have more than six eligible to play at one time.
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And from what Coffeyville Head Coach Jay Herkelman said, Sutton got caught in a bit of a numbers crunch this year. The plus side is that Sutton will now have three years of eligibility at St. Bonaventure, enhancing his chance of putting together a meaningful career at the Atlantic 10 school.
"He visited there in November and liked his visit," Herkelman said. "They were convinced that after seeing him play this past summer, that he was good enough to play in their program. So he decided that was what he was going to do."
Sutton was one of the Red Ravens' more promising freshmen last season, when he averaged nine points and 4.4 rebounds per game.
Herkelman feels that there are aspects of Sutton's game that will need fine tuning if he is to be an effective player at the next level.
"He will need to get stronger to play at that level," Herkelman said. "The Atlantic 10 is a very good league."
"They are planning on using him out on the floor at the small forward position," he continued. "He has to work on his ball handling and one on one moves to be able to get his shot off when the defenders are up in him."
Sutton has a long frame, and although he's just an average athlete, his height and length could cause matchup problems for some opponents on the perimeter.
"He's a good spot up shooter," Herkelman said. "He needs to be a stronger rebounder, but a lot of that has to do with gaining physical strength. That's one area he needs a lot of improvement."
Sutton is a native of Washington D.C. All three of the Bonnies' early signees have basketball roots in the D.C. area.