Syracuse basketball in fray for 5-star from Baltimore, No. 2 national player

A while back, I wrote a column about elite 2023 prospect Kwame Evans Jr. from Baltimore, in which I said that I hoped eventually Syracuse basketball would offer him.

The Orange has obliged. According to various media reports, including one from college basketball insider Adam Zagoria, the ‘Cuse coaching staff has offered the 6-foot-9 Evans, a consensus five-star, top-five player in this cycle who is either listed as a small forward or a power forward, depending on the recruiting service.

Now, Syracuse basketball will face an uphill climb to land Evans, who already has a boatload of high-major offers. The Orange’s offer to Evans, by the way, is among numerous ones to five-star, top-20 prospects in the 2023 class.

Evans competed as a sophomore for the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute in Baltimore, however, for his junior campaign, he is suiting up for the powerhouse Montverde Academy in Montverde, Fla.

Syracuse basketball is in the mix for five-star Kwame Evans Jr.

According to a review of numerous recruiting Web sites, Evans holds more than 20 offers, from teams such as Oregon, Ohio State, Indiana, Memphis, Texas, Southern California, Florida, Illinois, Pittsburgh, Kansas, LSU, Maryland, Tennessee, Texas A&M, St. John’s, Georgetown, Virginia Tech and Auburn.

That’s some hefty competition for the ‘Cuse. And given that Evans is just entering his junior stanza of prep-school ball, I imagine that all of the blue-blood groups and recruiting heavyweights across the country will end up vying for his services.

Recruiting services deem Evans the No. 1 forward, whether a small forward or a power forward, nationwide within the 2023 cycle.

Additionally, when I penned this article, Evans was rated No. 2 overall in the 2023 class according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite.

Other top-20 prospects in the 2023 cycle whom Syracuse basketball has offered include five-star power forward G.G. Jackson with Ridge View High School in Columbia, S.C., five-star point guard D.J. Wagner from Camden High School in Camden, N.J., five-star guard/wing Matas Buzelis out of the Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H., five-star combo guard Simeon Wilcher with Roselle Catholic High School in Roselle, N.J., and five-star small forward Justin Edwards, who attends Imhotep Institute Charter High School in Philadelphia.