Syracuse Basketball: Priority big-man recruit one of hottest 2023 prospects

Syracuse basketball head coach Jim Boeheim and some of his assistants watched 2023 big man Joseph Estrella play on the AAU circuit during an NCAA live period last weekend, and the 6-foot-10 power forward/center continues to raise his stock on the grassroots hoops circuit, according to experts.

Estrella, who absolutely should be entering the national rankings for this class sooner rather than later, has shined in two live periods this month, and the Orange is just one of many squads that have checked him out in person.

This past weekend, besides the ‘Cuse, other teams to watch Estrella included California, Penn State, Maryland, Duke, Kansas and North Carolina.

While Syracuse basketball got involved with Estrella relatively early on in his recruitment, and he’s said positive things about the Orange, those last three teams are concerning. If the Blue Devils, the Jayhawks and/or the Tar Heels offer Estrella – yikes.

Syracuse basketball offered big man Joseph Estrella last August at its annual Elite Camp.

In the most recent live period, Estrella and his teammates with the New England-based Middlesex Magic captured the 17 & under spring title on the Under Armour Association circuit, per a tweet from this stellar AAU squad.

https://twitter.com/TheCircuit/status/1518347736428515329?cxt=HHwWgsC4tZjOoJIqAAAA

For his recent performances, Estrella earned praise from 247Sports national basketball director Eric Bossi and 247Sports national analyst Dushawn London, among other experts.

Bossi called Estrella “one of the hottest post recruits in the country,” while London wrote that the Orange recruiting target is “one of the biggest names of the spring.”

Estrella had a wonderful junior term in 2021-22 for South Portland High School in South Portland, Maine, and he will suit up in his senior year for the powerhouse Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H.

According to reports, recruiting services and Estrella’s own Twitter page, some of his more recent offers have come from UMass, Illinois and Missouri.

His list of scholarship offers also includes Xavier, California, Maryland, Notre Dame, Wake Forest, Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, Boston College, Iowa, Providence, Tennessee, Harvard, Maine, Penn State and Marquette.

"Bossi wrote in part about Estrella, “He’s got a solid base, is a dangerous shooter, has great footwork and feel in the post and is one of the best passing big men in the country. He plays hard, has toughness and just a fun kid to watch operate.”"

As we noted not too long ago, Estrella is sorting out which teams he plans to visit in the near future, and we’ll continue to monitor whether he elects to take a trip to the Hill.