Syracuse Basketball: Jalen Carey’s Commitment Bolsters 2018 Class

The Syracuse basketball squad got a huge recruiting boost on Wednesday night, as 2018 four-star guard Jalen Carey pledged his commitment.

For once, my instincts proved correct.

On Wednesday, I penned a column, in which I predicted that 2018 targets Jalen Carey and Nate Roberts would ultimately decide to spend their collegiate careers in Central New York.

Now, Carey reportedly planned to announce on Oct. 11, which is his birthday. That didn’t happen. Rather, the four-star guard took to Twitter on Wednesday evening, in which he let the world know that, beginning with the 2018-19 campaign, he will play basketball at Syracuse.

All I can say is … heck yeah!

Roberts, meanwhile, still expects to reveal his choice on Oct. 17. The power forward, rated three or four stars depending on the recruiting service, is down to the ‘Cuse, Nebraska and Washington, led by former Orange assistant Mike Hopkins.

I got it spot-on with Carey; I hope the same occurs with Roberts.

The 6-3 Carey, a native of Harlem, N.Y., is from the Immaculate Conception High School in Montclair, N.J. He held a slew of scholarship offers, but eventually narrowed down his list to Connecticut and SU.

That we beat out a former Big East foe for Carey’s services is particularly sweet.

It’s an understatement to declare that Syracuse is on a fantastic roll as it pertains to the recruiting

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arena. In the past year, head coach Jim Boeheim and his staff lost out on an abundance of highly ranked prospects. We seemingly found our way into so many studs’ top six, top four, or even top two, then these dudes would head elsewhere.

To Arizona. Duke. Kansas. Kentucky. Miami. Villanova. And other powerhouse programs.

JB never seems to get too bummed when the ‘Cuse swings and misses. This is for good reason: recruiting is a crapshoot, recruiting is fickle, and recruiting can break your heart if you are too emotional about it.

However, all the downs felt by our beloved team are turning into ups.

With Carey on board, he joins a 2018 class that, in time, could become one of the Orange’s most prolific in recent memory. That’s a bold proclamation, given that SU has sent a bunch of its boys to the pros over the last decade.

Carey joins 2018 five-star forward Darius Bazley, 2018 three-star guard/small forward Buddy Boeheim (Jim Boeheim’s son), and guard/small forward Elijah Hughes, who is sitting out the upcoming stanza after transferring from East Carolina.

Jim Boeheim has said that Hughes is a tremendous talent. Beyond that assertion, let’s delve a little further into the other members of Syracuse’s 2018 class.

Carey is placed 34^th across the country via ESPN.com, 49^th at Rivals.com, 57^th from 247Sports, and 78^th by Scout.com. He is skilled at both point guard and shooting guard, and I imagine he will compete with junior Frank Howard and freshman Howard Washington for minutes right away.

Bazley checks in at 9^th overall from ESPN.com, 12^th by Scout.com, 14^th at Rivals.com, and 29^th via 247Sports. Oh, and he is one of just 18 seniors in high school who will try to land a spot on the 2018 USA Junior National Select outfit that will suit up for the 21^st-annual Nike Hoop Summit, held next April.

Next: Syracuse Football Report Card: Who did well against NC State?

Buddy Boeheim, meanwhile, is regarded as one of the best shooters in the 2018 class. The 247Sports Composite slots him at 194^th overall.

Carey’s commitment vaults the ‘Cuse’s 2018 class to No. 8 across the country, and No. 3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, according to the 247Sports Composite.

So to those SU “fans” out there who perennially complain that we can’t recruit all that well, take a seat.

Furthermore, Roberts, a top-200 player out of Baltimore who attends the Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H., along with Buddy Boeheim, remains in the mix.

Add him to Syracuse’s existing 2018 class? Yikes!

I guess Jim Boeheim sticking around for several more seasons is having a positive effect on the recruiting front.

Maybe I’m wrong. But as Jalen Carey proved, once in a while, I get something right.