Syracuse Basketball: Missing on 4-star Arthur Kaluma stings, not a dagger

Syracuse basketball gave it a second go-round in recruiting 2021 four-star power forward Arthur Kaluma, but it just wasn’t meant to be for the Orange to land the top-50 player across the country in his cycle.

The 6-foot-8 Kaluma, a senior at Dream City Christian School in Glendale, Ariz., announced on social media that he is planning to attend Big East Conference member Creighton.

According to reports, Syracuse basketball coaches had held more than one Zoom call of late with Kaluma. His other reported finalists, besides the ‘Cuse and the Bluejays, were Arizona, Mike Hopkins-led Washington and Western Kentucky.

Previously, Syracuse basketball had also courted Kaluma. He had the Orange in his top eight before selecting UNLV. The Rebels recently had a head-coaching change, and Kaluma received a release from his commitment to UNLV, opening his recruitment back up.

Based on various media reports, Kaluma’s factors under consideration included choosing a squad that could provide him with immediate playing time. That, ultimately, could have been an issue for Syracuse basketball in trying to prevail in this recruiting battle.

In recent days, the rumblings in ‘Cuse chat rooms and on social media was that Kaluma may have been leaning toward either Creighton or Arizona. Right before his announcement, Kaluma received some analyst predictions in the direction of Creighton on the 247Sports Web site.

Syracuse basketball can still shine next season without top-50 Arthur Kaluma.

Without question, I would have loved to see Kaluma don an Orange uniform. He’s a versatile and athletic forward who excels on the defensive end, rebounds well and is an excellent passer.

But I do get why he may have shied away from the ‘Cuse. Heading into the upcoming campaign, Syracuse basketball has three forwards on its roster in 2021 five-star commit Benny Williams out of the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., along with Cornell transfer Jimmy Boeheim and Villanova transfer Cole Swider.

While these other forwards are all new to the Orange program, I certainly can understand if Kaluma looked at the ‘Cuse roster and felt that playing time might have proven challenging.

I do believe that Syracuse basketball can still get some really strong production from its three current forwards, although Kaluma would have added depth, which is always important when foul trouble or injuries could surface.

After he made his decision, I did read comments from some Orange fans in chat rooms bemoaning that Syracuse basketball lost out on Kaluma for a second time, and this time at the hands of Creighton.

Well, the Bluejays don’t have the historical track record of the ‘Cuse, but they did reach the Sweet 16 in the most recent NCAA Tournament.

With Kaluma on board, Creighton has a top-10 class nationwide in the 2021 cycle, per the 247Sports Web site. The Bluejays have also finished third or better in the Big East regular-season standings for five-consecutive seasons.