‘Culture shift’: Norfolk State signs four-star basketball recruit Nate Tabor

Norfolk State has landed four-star recruit Nate Tabor, adding the 6’8” forward from Queens, N.Y., to a rotation that includes four returning starters.

“Today is a good day for Spartan Basketball. As the talk of a culture shift in collegiate sports has become relevant recently, Nate Tabor has decided to start that shift,” coach Robert Jones said. “It is not every day we or other HBCUs get a Top 100 player.

“Nate can do it all. At his size, he can play anywhere from the 1 through 4 positions. If he keeps progressing, he has NBA potential with his size, strength, skill and athleticism. We are very happy to add Nate to our Spartan family!”

Tabor was listed as the No. 32 player in the East Region, No. 38 among all small forwards in the nation and No. 2 in the state of Connecticut by ESPN following his junior year. He had committed to St. John’s during his junior season and was offered by schools such as Auburn, Connecticut, LSU and Texas Tech, among others, during the recruiting process.

Both 247Sports and Rivals list Tabor as a three-star recruit, with 247Sports ranking him as the No. 45 small forward in the nation and the No. 7 player in Connecticut following his junior year. 247Sports had Tabor ranked in the top 70 in the nation at one point during his high school career.

Tabor attended South Shore High School in New York his senior year in 2019-2020, but did not compete. As a junior, he competed for Sacred Heart High School in Connecticut during the 2018-2019 school year. He averaged 18.5 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists, leading the school to the Naugatuck Valley League regular season and tournament championships and to the Division I state quarterfinals. He was named to the GameTimeCT All-State first team.

He also competed on the AAU circuit for NY RENS.

The Spartans went 16-15 overall a year ago, 12-4 in the MEAC. They tied for second in the regular season standings before the MEAC Tournament was shut down due to COVID-19. All-MEAC third-team guard and departing senior Steven Whitley is expected to be the only player not back. The NSU program is hoping to return 12 of 13 players from 2019-2020 for next season.