Syracuse basketball should pursue 4-star combo guard from Baltimore

Syracuse basketball has a four-star point guard and a four-star shooting guard among its five 2022 signees, and Orange coaches are pursuing 2022 four-star guard Judah Mintz, and they’ve reportedly reached out to 2022 five-star guard Skyy Clark, who recently de-committed from blue-blood squad Kentucky.

If the ‘Cuse coaching staff is intent on adding another quality guard in this cycle, I’ve got a request for Syracuse basketball coaches. Pursue Bryce Lindsay. Or re-pursue him, for that matter.

I say this, because we wrote a few columns about this talented and underrated 6-foot-4 combo guard in the fall of 2020 and early in 2021, as recruiting experts were noting during that time period that the Orange was showing interest in Lindsay, a four-star, top-100 prospect in the 2022 class.

Lindsay, whom analysts and scouts say is one of the best deep-range shooters in this cycle, had committed to South Carolina out of the Southeastern Conference in late January of this year.

However, the Gamecocks have gone through a head-coaching change, with former boss Frank Martin now at UMass, while South Carolina’s new head coach is Lamont Paris, who most recently led the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

As such, Lindsay recently said on Twitter that he has reopened his recruitment back up. An On3.com article says that teams such as Florida, Arizona State, West Virginia, Virginia and Boston College have reached out to Lindsay.

Syracuse basketball coaches had previously taken a look at four-star guard Bryce Lindsay.

I’ve been high on Lindsay for a while. He previously was one of the standouts for the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute. During his senior season in 2021-22, Lindsay has suited up for the St. Frances Academy in Baltimore and put forth some huge games for the Panthers.

Lindsay appears to have a knack for producing at a really high level in crunch time. In late January of 2022, for example, he drained a 3-pointer in a contest’s waning seconds to propel the St. Frances Academy to victory.

In a story following that triumph, his head coach at the St. Frances Academy, Nick Myles, said of Lindsay, “He’s a cold blooded killer.” By the way, according to the MaxPreps Web site, the St. Frances Academy has compiled a 34-6 record in 2021-22 and is a top-five team in the state of Maryland.

So, yes, it’s true that the Orange already has two guards in its 2022 class, as well as two guards who will be seniors for the ‘Cuse in 2022-23, but there’s just something about Lindsay that intrigues me.

He’s clutch. He’s assertive. He’s confident. He’s versatile, with the ability to effectively compete at point guard and shooting guard. There’s moxie to his game. I also think he’s extremely underrated in the 2022 cycle, as far as national rankings are concerned.

Some recruiting Web sites deem Lindsay as a top-20 to a top-25 combo guard or shooting guard in his class. According to 247Sports and other recruiting services, he’s obtained more than 15 offers throughout his recruitment, including from Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, Xavier, Virginia Tech, Georgetown, VCU, Texas A&M, Marquette and Iona.

His bio on the 247Sports Web site also said Lindsay has held interest from Syracuse basketball, Arizona, Arizona State, Creighton, Cincinnati, Purdue, Rutgers and others.