Syracuse Basketball: 5-star Zion Cruz, Jarace Walker predictions called off

Some predictions by national analysts and other recruiting insiders recently were pulled for 2022 five-star guard Zion Cruz and 2022 five-star power forward Jarace Walker, both of whom hold Syracuse basketball offers.

For context, other predictions for each of these elite high-school prospects remain in force. We’ll have to see how the recruiting processes play out for the 6-foot-5 Cruz and the 6-foot-8 Walker.

The Orange offered a scholarship to Cruz about two years ago. He attends The Patrick School in Hillside, N.J., and is deemed a top-20 prospect in this class, according to most recruiting services.

Walker, meanwhile, received an offer from the ‘Cuse coaching staff in June of 2020. A consensus top-15 player in the 2022 cycle, he is heading into his senior year at the powerhouse IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

While Syracuse basketball fans, myself included, have held out high hopes that the Orange would figure strongly in the recruitments of both Walker and Cruz, that hasn’t transpired.

Let’s look at where things stand with two stellar prospects who have Syracuse basketball offers.

Cruz continues to maintain several predictions on Rivals.com in the direction of Auburn, a Southeastern Conference school that has landed a ton of buzz for him in recent months.

However, one projection for Cruz to Auburn was recently taken down on the 247Sports Web site. It could mean something, and it could mean nothing.

As we noted in a column this past weekend, Cruz delayed his commitment announcement that was scheduled for August 19. Additionally, Auburn recently picked up a verbal pledge from 2022 four-star point guard Tre Donaldson.

Cruz, we should mention, is more of a combo guard. He has gone on visits to Auburn and Oregon, and fellow Atlantic Coast Conference member North Carolina offered Cruz not too long ago.

Moving on to Walker, he has two projections for another SEC group, Alabama, on Rivals.com. But a prediction for him in favor of Houston on the 247Sports Web site is no longer there.

Earlier this summer, Walker made official visits to Alabama, Auburn, Houston and Ohio State. Some recent media reports have suggested that Walker may look to take more visits in the future.

Is Auburn still the favorite for Cruz? Probably, although I’m not in his inner circle. Alabama certainly has a good shot with Walker, but so could the other teams that he has already visited.