Syracuse Basketball: Not surprised that Orange is left off 4-star wing’s list

Several months back, I remained excited and hopeful that Syracuse basketball would emerge as a significant contender for 2022 four-star wing Ty Rodgers.

We even noted in a couple of columns how, in the past, Orange head coach Jim Boeheim was reportedly in regular communication with the 6-foot-7 Rodgers.

However, this past April fellow 2022 four-star wing Kamari Lands gave a verbal commitment to the ‘Cuse. Lands, though, did recently re-open his recruiting process back up.

In late June, another 2022 four-star wing, Justin Taylor, gave his verbal commitment to the Orange. And Syracuse basketball coaches continue to pursue, at least as far as I can tell, another 2022 four-star wing, Chris Bunch.

Rodgers recently revealed his top-nine finalists on social media, and he didn’t include the ‘Cuse. This is no surprise, but it’s still a bummer, because I think Rodgers is an elite 2022 prospect.

Syracuse basketball didn’t seem to have any strong buzz for Ty Rodgers of late.

So the remaining contenders for Rodgers are Michigan, Michigan State, Illinois, Connecticut, Alabama, Rhode Island, Xavier, Marquette and Memphis.

That’s a lot of excellent squads for Rodgers to choose from, and Michigan absolutely has gotten buzz for him in recent months, according to some national analysts and recruiting insiders.

Since I’m not a recruiting analyst, I don’t pretend to know whether Syracuse basketball lost interest in Rodgers, he lost interest in the Orange, or perhaps they each just decided to move in different directions at some point in time. It happens.

Rodgers is heading into his senior year at Grand Blanc Community High School in Grand Blanc, Mich. Last spring, he helped guide his high school to a state championship and was also named the AP Division 1 Player of the Year in Michigan.

Rivals.com recently updated its national rankings for the 2022 class, and Rodgers checks in at No. 66. ESPN, too, recently refreshed its 2022 national ratings, with Rodgers at No. 49.

The industry-generated 247Sports Composite, which frequently fluctuates, has Rodgers hovering around a top-50 player across the country in his cycle.

Rodgers is deemed a top-20 small forward in the 2022 class, according to the majority of recruiting services. He’s also the No. 1 prospect within his cycle in Michigan.

Wishing Ty all the best. He’s talented, humble, hard-working and a nice young man.