Syracuse basketball 4-star targets ball out at National Prep Championship

Two Syracuse basketball four-star recruiting targets in the 2023 cycle were among the standouts at the recently held National Prep Championship in Connecticut, according to a national analyst.

That analyst, Jamie Shaw of On3.com, recently published several articles in which he praised the play of 2023 four-star shooting guard/small forward Reid Ducharme and 2023 four-star center Ugonna Kingsley.

The 6-foot-6 Ducharme is a junior at the powerhouse Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H. He received a ‘Cuse scholarship offer this past August at the team’s annual Elite Camp.

The 7-foot Kingsley, meanwhile, is a junior at the Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, Conn. Orange coaches offered him a scholarship in February.

Syracuse basketball recruiting targets were excellent at a prestigious event.

Ducharme, Kingsley and their respective teams recently competed in the 2022 National Prep Championship held at the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford, Conn. According to media reports, 24 of the top prep-school squads from around the country played in this event.

Shaw named Kingsley as the best defensive player at the 2022 National Prep Championship. Ducharme was anointed to the all-tournament first team.

"The On3 analyst wrote in part about Ducharme that “there is a toughness” about him, continuing with, “He is a smooth shooter, both catch and shoot and off the two-dribble pull-up. … Ducharme is a solid area rebounder and an energetic team defender. There is a lot to like about how Ducharme plays and what he brings from the wing.”"

As for Kingsley, Shaw said this offensive game is somewhat “raw,” but he is an “elite rim protector. What he does on the defensive end of the floor changes the nature of the game. He has an excellent length with natural timing and elite explosion.”

Per reports and recruiting services, Ducharme holds offers or interest from other college teams such as Connecticut, Providence, Stanford, Iowa, UMass, DePaul, Harvard, Brown, Penn State, Creighton, Loyola Chicago, Marquette and Michigan State.

Kingsley has offers from squads including Ole Miss, Georgia, Providence, Georgetown, Texas Tech, Washington State, Clemson, Seton Hall, California and Iowa.

As far as national rankings within the 2023 class go, On3 just updated its ratings, and Kingsley skyrocketed there, all the way up to No. 25 overall. Rivals.com has him at No. 87 nationally.

At the time of this writing, Ducharme was No. 142 overall, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite, as well as No. 97 nationwide, per the On3 Consensus Ratings.

Rivals.com puts Ducharme at No. 105 across the country, while his new On3 ranking checks in at No. 62 in the 2023 cycle.