Photo of Matthew Cleveland dunking

Four-star shooting guard Matthew Cleveland committed to Florida State on Tuesday, about three weeks after including the Seminoles on his list of five finalists

Cleveland announced on June 29 that Leonard Hamilton’s team was competing with Kansas, Michigan, Stanford and NC State for his talents. He was so focused on the narrowed list that he declined interest from North Carolina and Kentucky that arose after his dominant, 32-point-per-game performance at the OnTheRadarHoops event in Atlanta.

He told 247Sports he chose the Seminoles out of comfort with Hamilton and the program as a whole. During the recruitment process, he said, he came to value the program’s “family atmosphere.”

Cleveland added that he found Hamilton’s history with player development impressive. “Just the way he develops wings like me, like the Devin Vassell, Terance Mann, Dwayne Bacon, Trent Forrest, Patrick Williams and guys like that, just the way he is able to develop them,” he said of Hamilton, per 247Sports.

With the addition of Cleveland, whom 247Sports ranks as the No. 15 overall player and the second-best shooting guard in the class, FSU’s 2021 recruiting class has two commitments. Both are from top-50 recruits, according to 247Sports.

Cleveland joins four-star shooting guard Bryce McGowens, whom 247Sports ranks as the No. 45 overall player. The other member of the Seminoles’ 2021 class is Naheem McLean, who reclassified from 2020 in April.

According to the ESPN 100 for 2021, Cleveland is the No. 35 overall player — ranking just behind McGowens, who sits at No. 33 on the list. He is also the seventh-best guard in the class, per ESPN. In the composite rankings, which combine rankings from Rivals, 247Sports and ESPN, Cleveland is listed as a four-star player.

As a junior at Pace Academy (Ga.), Cleveland averaged 22 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals. In a scouting report, Jerry Meyer of 247Sports refers to Cleveland as a lengthy wing scorer. He said Cleveland can make tough shots but needs to improve in terms of long-range shooting. Meyer said he is a “top-notch rebounder for his position” and has the potential to be an elite defender.