5-star guard Matthew Cleveland spurns Kansas and chooses Florida State

Matthew Cleveland is coming to Tallahassee.

During his time at Florida State, Leonard Hamilton has developed quite a talent for convincing elite recruits across the country to join his project down in Tallahassee. His latest prize catch is 5-star guard Matthew Cleveland, who left his home state of Georgia to join the Seminoles.

Cleveland, the No. 15 player in the class of 2021 according to 247sports, named Florida State, Kansas, North Carolina State, Michigan and Stanford as his five finalists. Cleveland left many in Lawrence and Ann Arbor stunned when he spurned those blue bloods to link up with Hamilton and Florida State. Cleveland confirmed his decision on Twitter.

Matthew Cleveland has the talent to be a star right away at Florida State.

Cleveland is not only the 15th-best player in the country, but he’s the No. 2 ranked pure shooting guard. Only Michigan State commit Max Christie is ranked higher.

If anything about Hamilton is true, it’s the fact that he likes to play a physical style of defense. Luckily, the 6-foot-6 Cleveland’s long arms and ability to defend multiple positions could help him see time right away. Offensively, Cleveland excels at speeding towards the hoop, finishing at the rim, and using his remarkable athleticism to create havoc in the paint.

While he will need to improve his jump shot and ability to create his own shot, there is a lot to like in Cleveland on both ends of the floor. If Hamilton is wise, he’ll put Cleveland in the starting lineup as soon as he’s able.

Before the coronavirus pandemic shut the season down just before the NCAA tournament, Hamilton’s Seminoles were on a roll. Now that one of the best and most versatile players in the country in Cleveland has committed to FSU, look for the Noles to make some noise in the ACC in the 2020-21 season.