It’s always encouraging when Syracuse basketball coaches get involved with a top-flight prospect early on in his recruitment, which is the case with 2023 five-star player Matas Buzelis from the powerhouse Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H.
The 6-foot-10 Buzelis, who can suit up at both guard positions and on the wing, received a scholarship offer from the Orange last November, way before some of the recruiting heavyweights in collegiate hoops.
Plus, as reported by Mike Waters of Syracuse.com, ‘Cuse head coach Jim Boeheim and assistant coach Gerry McNamara made a recent visit to the Brewster Academy to see Buzelis and some of his teammates.
So that’s good. However, Buzelis is easily one of the hottest prospects in his recruiting cycle. He’s skyrocketed up the national rankings, and the number of big-time schools pursuing him is massive.
Let’s check in on the latest in the recruitment of Syracuse basketball target Matas Buzelis.
Besides the Orange, among the teams that have offered Buzelis are North Carolina, Kansas, Florida State, Illinois, Florida, Purdue, Oklahoma, Arizona, UCLA, Maryland, Connecticut, DePaul, Providence, Wake Forest, Nebraska and Western Illinois.
According to his bio on the Verbal Commits Web site, Big Ten Conference juggernauts Michigan and Ohio State have offered Buzelis this month.
Recruiting guru Jake Weingarten, the founder of Stockrisers.com, recently tweeted out that Duke, Kentucky, UNC and Illinois all have made trips to visit with Buzelis of late.
Duke’s Jon Scheyer and Kentucky’s John Calipari are expected in today for Five-star junior Matas Buzelis, he told @Stockrisers. Reported earlier yesterday, Illinois & UNC had staffers in yesterday. Busy commodity in Buzelis.
— Jake (@jakeweingarten) September 22, 2021
In my own personal opinion, the four primary blue-bloods these days, from a recruiting perspective, are Duke, Kentucky, North Carolina and Kansas.
All four of them, along with other heavyweights like Michigan and Florida State, are in the mix for Buzelis. How the heck is Syracuse basketball going to win out for him over these other formidable suitors?
The short answer is that the ‘Cuse probably won’t prevail in the recruiting sweepstakes for Buzelis, but you never know how these things will shake out.
Buzelis, who is from the Chicago metropolitan area, has unofficially visited teams such as Connecticut, DePaul, Kansas and Purdue, according to media reports. He’s reportedly planning a trip to Florida State at the end of September.
There is a ton of buzz surrounding Buzelis, who recently entered the top-10 overall in the 2023 class, according to ESPN. We’ll continue to monitor whether Syracuse basketball remains a viable contender for Buzelis down the road.