Basketball recruiting: Archbishop Wood’s Rahsool Diggins developing into national prospect

Rahsool Diggins has learned than less can be more.

Especially when it comes to phone calls.

“I haven’t been answering my phone a lot lately,” said Diggins, Archbishop Wood’s standout junior guard and one of the state’s hottest recruits in the class of 2021. “I’ve been practicing being busy.”

Diggins is applying the same philosophy to the court, focusing less on scoring and more on distributing the basketball to teammates.

The 6-foot-3 athlete still averages a team-best 19.2 points for Archbishop Wood (16-4), the No. 1 team in The Inquirer’s Southeastern Pennsylvania Top 10.

But even as Diggins was reaching the 1,000-point career plateau last Friday night in a victory over Philadelphia Catholic League foe Archbishop Carroll, his floor game took precedence over his numbers in the score book.

“The big thing with him this season is him being the leader and knowing that he doesn’t have to do everything for us to win,” Archbishop Wood coach John Mosco said. “The last game against Carroll really showed. He was sick, and he just played at a pace where he got everybody involved.”

Diggins finished the game with 19 points. But he also generated 10 assists and grabbed five rebounds, a typical all-around performance for him in an 80-61 victory.

Archbishop Wood, which has won 14 of 15, finishes the regular season with home games Friday against La Salle and Sunday against Archbishop Ryan. With an 11-1 mark in Philadelphia Catholic League play, the Vikings are in position to secure a top two seed in the league playoffs.

“The best thing is yet to come in that he’s still learning,” Mosco said. “He’s going to continue to get more people involved, and I think he’s going to get more offers as it goes through.”

Diggins is a four-star recruit, according to 247sports.com composite rankings. The recruiting service rivals.com lists him as the No. 43 player in the country in the class of 2021.

Diggins has 22 college scholarship offers, with local schools such as St. Joseph’s, Penn State, and La Salle in the hunt for his services along with national programs such as DePaul, Virginia Tech, Seton Hall, Connecticut, and Xavier, among others.

Diggins said he has visited De Paul and Seton Hall. He’s not close to narrowing his list, as another strong spring and summer on the AAU circuit with Team Final could generate even more interest.

Diggins complains a little about the constant contact from college coaches. But he also remembers the days before his first offer.

“I was in the gym and other people were getting offers and I was like, ‘Oh, I wish just one school would offer me,’ ” Diggins said. “Now you got to choose from a bunch.

“At first it was exciting. Right now, it’s a little overwhelming.”

Diggins, who lives in North Philadelphia, has played his best in the biggest games.

He went for 33 in a loss to national power Wasatch (Utah) at the Iolani Classic in Honolulu in December. He collected 14 points with seven assists and seven rebounds in a tight win at Cardinal O’Hara. He scored in double figures in every league game, with 26 in a victory over Bonner-Prendergast and 28 in a double-overtime triumph over Roman Catholic.

Rangy, quick, and instinctive, Diggins is a master at changing pace and direction. He can score from distance and finish at the rim.

But with talented teammates such as fellow junior standouts Jaylen Stinson, Daeshon Shepherd, Marcus Randolph, and Muneer Newton, Diggins doesn’t need to carry the scoring load for the Vikings.

“I like to see everybody happy,” Diggins said. “But I also have to know when it’s my time to take over.

“It’s how it’s flowing. If my team’s not hitting, then I go. If they are, then we keep rolling.”