Syracuse Basketball: Time to pack Dome as 4-star guard to visit for Duke

Syracuse basketball will receive an official visit from one of the top guards in the 2022 recruiting cycle later this month, in an encouraging sign that perhaps the Orange is emerging as a serious contender for this top-35 player.

According to media reports, including one from the terrific SyracuseOnSI publisher Mike McAllister, 2022 four-star guard Judah Mintz is expected to travel to the Hill on February 25-27.

Per McAllister and other reports, the 6-foot-3 Mintz will also take visits to DePaul on February 8-10, N.C. State on February 17-19 and Wake Forest on March 2-4.

Mintz, a senior at the powerhouse Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., de-committed from Pittsburgh last November. It would seem that the ‘Cuse and the other schools that Mintz is visiting could be considered as potential favorites for him, at least for the time being.

At the time of this writing, I hadn’t seen any predictions from national analysts or recruiting insiders as to Mintz’s possible collegiate destination on either the 247Sports Web site or Rivals.com.

Reports suggest that Mintz could make his college decision in late March or early April. Yes, the Orange already has a strong five-member class in 2022, but my own personal opinion is that the ‘Cuse has a legit chance with Mintz to further bolster this SU cycle.

Four-star guard Judah Mintz will visit Syracuse basketball later this month.

When Mintz goes on his official visit in Central New York, I imagine that he will check out the Syracuse basketball game versus top-10 Duke, which is slated for Saturday, Feb. 26, beginning at 6 pm.

Late last month, the Blue Devils smoked the Orange on their own turf. Duke, this past weekend, also pasted in-state rival North Carolina on the road, and the Blue Devils look like the premier squad in the Atlantic Coast Conference, as well as a strong Final Four contender.

In recent home contests, including the one this past Saturday afternoon versus Louisville, the Syracuse basketball fan base has shown up in stellar numbers.

On February 26, I could absolutely foresee the Orange setting the high mark for attendance during the 2021-22 stanza, considering the opponent.

It’s also the final time that Duke’s legendary head coach, Mike Krzyzewski, will visit the Carrier Dome and face off against his good friend, ‘Cuse boss Jim Boeheim, at least in the regular season. Krzyzewski is scheduled to retire after the 2021-22 term.

My point of providing such context here is that I really hope the Orange fares well against the Blue Devils, with 30,000-plus fans cheering the ‘Cuse on while Mintz is in attendance.

He is a top-10 combo guard or a top-10 shooting guard in the 2022 class, depending on the recruiting service. ESPN has Mintz at No. 35 overall. If Syracuse basketball were to prevail in his recruitment, this upcoming official visit would prove a critical piece in the Orange coming out on top.