Syracuse basketball 4-star big man target is one of ‘highest upside players’

Syracuse basketball recently got into the recruiting fray for 2023 four-star big man Isaiah Miranda, who is a consensus top-45 player in this cycle.

I was excited to see that the Orange coaching staff had offered the 7-foot-1 power forward/center, although as we noted in a recent column, competition for Miranda is intense.

Miranda recently performed quite well at the 2021 National Prep Showcase in New Haven, Conn., according to analysts and scouts. In fact, the folks at Pro Insight said that Miranda’s one game at this event, in which he tallied 28 points and seven rebounds, was, “perhaps, the strongest overall performance of his young career.”

The Pro Insight article said that watching Miranda at the National Prep Showcase were coaches from the ‘Cuse, Kentucky, Providence and St. John’s.

Syracuse basketball four-star target Isaiah Miranda is a stellar big man.

In assessing Miranda’s skill-set, Pro Insight said that he is “one of the highest upside players in the country.” He has good range from 3-point land, which is enticing for a prospect of his height and length.

Pro Insight notes that Miranda has a fairly soft touch around the basket and runs the court well, adding that he “is a plus shot-blocker with a thin frame.”

Miranda is in his junior year at the Springfield Commonwealth Academy in Springfield, Mass. On the grassroots basketball circuit, he suits up for an excellent AAU team, Rhode Island Elite.

Numerous recruiting services deem Miranda as a top-five center across the country in the 2023 class, as well as the No. 1 prospect in Massachusetts.

According to media reports and recruiting Web sites, Miranda has visited UCLA, USC, Providence and UConn, and he has an official visit planned for Kentucky later on in December.

Per reports and recruiting services, Miranda’s other offers include from USC, Memphis, Maryland, Mike Hopkins-led Washington, Connecticut, Virginia Tech, Providence, Rutgers, Seton Hall, St. John’s, Oklahoma State, Georgia Tech, VCU and Rhode lsland.

He also holds interest from teams such as Kentucky, UCLA, Illinois and Oregon.

Interestingly, Pro Insight said that Miranda “can be available” in the 2023 or 2022 cycle. If he ended up as a member of the 2022 class, I’m not sure how realistic it would be for Syracuse basketball to win out for him, since the Orange already has a five-member 2022 cycle that includes two big men.