I said not too long ago in a column that I thought Syracuse basketball was in really good shape with 2022 four-star prospect Quadir Copeland, and that prognostication isn’t looking so off-base at this juncture.
The 6-foot-6 Copeland, a stellar point guard in his class who is rising up the national rankings, is projected by Rivals.com national analyst Jamie Shaw to ultimately choose the ‘Cuse.
Now, we all know how these sorts of predictions can go. A high-school prospect’s recruitment can rapidly change, and by no means is it a guarantee that Copeland will eventually don an Orange uniform.
That being said, if multiple more analyst predictions arrive in favor of Syracuse basketball for Copeland, that’s a really encouraging sign. As context, we should point out that Shaw also correctly projected 2022 four-star wing Justin Taylor to the Orange.
Taylor, who has said that he’s trying to recruit Copeland to join him on the Hill, decided to make the ‘Cuse his collegiate home at the end of June.
Syracuse basketball absolutely has a strong chance to pick up four-star Quadir Copeland.
Copeland and his AAU team, the Millburn, N.J.-based New Jersey Scholars Elite Basketball Club, have been suiting up at the 2021 Peach Jam tournament in North Augusta, S.C.
Additionally, Orange head coach Jim Boeheim recently watched Copeland compete at the 2021 Atlantic City Jam Fest, according to 247Sports national analyst Dushawn London.
For his senior year, Copeland is transferring from the Life Center Academy in Burlington, N.J., to the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., which is also where ‘Cuse 2021 five-star commit Benny Williams played during his own senior season.
For quite some time, Copeland was vastly under-rated across the country in his class. However, when Rivals.com recently updated its national rankings for the 2022 cycle, Copeland entered at No. 85 overall and No. 22 at point guard.
Syracuse basketball coaches offered a scholarship to Copeland last November. He has taken an official visit to Central New York, and Copeland’s other offers include from Maryland, Oklahoma State, Iona, Connecticut, Oregon, Miami, Penn State, La Salle, Saint Joseph’s and Siena.
We’ll of course continue to monitor whether Copeland receives additional analyst predictions for the Orange, as well as other teams in pursuit of him.