AJ Swinton committed to Florida State in August. But he made his first visit to Tallahassee over the weekend. One of the nation’s top forwards, Swinton was hosted by guard Chandler Jackson and forward Taylor Bol Bowen.

“I have so much respect for every coach on staff,” Swinton told the Osceola. “Coach (Kevin) Nickelberry and I are both from the DMV (DC, Maryland, Virginia) area so there’s a connection there but I also learned a lot about all the coaches in the short time I spent in Tallahassee.

“Obviously, Coach (Leonard) Hamilton is a legend. We talked a lot about his coaching style and the expectations he has of me on and off the court.”

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The 6-foot-6, 190-pound Swinton is a native of Washington, D.C., but will play his senior season at Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon. During his visit, Swinton, his mom, brother and grandmother met the coaching staff.

Swinton and some family members also sat down with assistant coach Stan Jones for a lengthy discussion about his strengths, areas of improvement and development.

“My family and I were really impressed by his presentation,” Swinton said. “We talked in detail about my ability to be positionless within the system and past FSU players similar to me who have had the level of success that I want to achieve. ...

"We talked a lot about Terance Mann. The coaches broke down film of Terance in college and from my games over the past few seasons. We share a lot of similarities, not just our height and length but also things like explosiveness, three-and-D ability, vision and tenacity."

Swinton is viewed as one of the top forwards in the nation by Rivals and is the first member of FSU’s 2024 signing class. He will make his signing official on Nov. 8.

While looking forward to his senior season, Swinton would also like to make a return trip to Tallahassee for a home game if his schedule allows.

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