Syracuse Basketball: 5-star Canadian wing talks options, no ‘Cuse mention

Syracuse basketball, unless something drastically changes, doesn’t appear to be a major contender for 2023 five-star wing Elijah Fisher.

The Orange coaching staff got involved with the 6-foot-7 Fisher relatively early on in his recruitment, offering the consensus top-30 player a scholarship in July of 2020.

Further back, I did come across articles here and there in which Fisher would discuss his recruiting process, and he would note that the ‘Cuse was in regular contact. Fisher, a junior at the Crestwood Preparatory College in Toronto, Ontario, would speak highly of the Syracuse basketball program.

However, more recently, whenever I’ve read an interview given by Fisher, or an article written by a national recruiting analyst about him, there is no mention of the Orange when teams prioritizing Fisher are discussed.

Syracuse basketball looks like a long shot to land five-star Elijah Fisher.

Fisher, a shooting guard/small forward, hails from Canada, so when the ‘Cuse offered him, I thought maybe the Orange would have a decent chance at prevailing in his recruitment.

I say this, because over the years, Syracuse basketball coaches have fared well in picking up talented high-school prospects from that country.

According to recruiting services, Fisher holds more than 20 scholarship offers from teams such as Texas Tech, Kentucky, Florida State, Arizona, Wake Forest, Seton Hall, Georgia Tech, St. John’s, West Virginia, Kansas, Southern California, Texas A&M, Florida, Vanderbilt, Baylor, Memphis, Oklahoma State and Oregon.

When we penned a column about Fisher late last year, he said at that time the four college squads reaching out to him the most were Oklahoma State, Alabama, Texas Tech and Florida State. Per his bio on the 247Sports Web site, Fisher took an official visit to Texas Tech in January.

In a new article from Rivals.com national analyst Travis Graf, Fisher discussed some potential college options, naming teams like Texas Tech, Auburn, Memphis, Pittsburgh, Oklahoma State and Alabama. A professional path straight from the Crestwood Preparatory College is also a possibility, according to the Rivals.com piece.

Graf wrote in part that “Auburn has a lot of buzz when it comes to the college route,” and also that “Texas Tech has a little buzz” as it pertains to Fisher’s recruitment.

The recruiting processes of high-school players can ebb and flow, and I’m not a recruiting analyst, but based on what I’ve read about Fisher, I don’t envision him coming to the Hill.

Most recruiting services rank Fisher as a five-star prospect in the 2023 cycle, as well as a top-20 overall player in this class.