Local duo likely high draft picks

The MLS SuperDraft will be held Friday afternoon in Chicago, where a pair of players with Colorado roots are expected to be selected high in the first round.

Syracuse’s Tajon Buchanan (Legacy High School) is the projected No. 1 pick, according to MLSSoccer.com senior writer Matthew Doyle, while Indiana’s Griffin Dorsey (Evergreen High School) is projected to be selected 11th.

Both players are 19-yearold Generation Adidas signees, meaning they can be selected by any club, and will represent the Centennial State on draft day alongside University of Denver senior forward Andre Shinyashiki, a Brazilian who’s projected to be taken fifth overall.

For Buchanan — a Toronto native who moved to Broomfield before his junior year of high school — the road to becoming a top draft prospect hasn’t always seemed sure. Following his move to Colorado, FIFA and the U.S. Soccer Federation declared Buchanan ineligible for Development Academy competition because he lived with a coach and his family, not his biological parents.

The setback forced Buchanan to play for Legacy instead, where as a senior he amassed 21 goals and plenty of recognition to go with before finally becoming eligible to play with Real Colorado once he turned 18.

“That was a huge obstacle I had to face,” Buchanan said. “I wasn’t playing at the level I should have, but playing for Legacy was a confidence booster, because I went out and performed and was recognized with all the awards — state player of the year, Gatorade (state) player of the year. That helped with my confidence going into Syracuse.”

Buchanan started every match as a freshman with the Orange and then broke out during his recent sophomore season, when he led the team in points (20) and goals (eight) while also recording four assists. He has earned scouting looks by the Canadian junior national team.

Like Buchanan, Dorsey also projects as a versatile professional, and the natural winger will likely see immediate time at left back by whichever club drafts him. Dorsey earned allstate honors as a freshman at Evergreen before spending his final three years of high school playing for Colorado Rush.

After starting 23 matches as a freshman with the Hoosiers, Dorsey was an All-Big 10 selection as a sophomore this past season and scoring five goals, five assists and 15 points despite missing time while playing with the U-20 National Team.