Syracuse Basketball: Duke lands predictions for 4-star priority Brewster big

Duke is getting some buzz for Syracuse basketball 2023 priority recruit Joseph Estrella on the 247Sports Web site.

In recent days, at least two predictions have gotten logged in the Blue Devils’ direction for the fast-rising four-star big man on the 247Sports Web site, and one of those projections has a high confidence level.

We know how these sorts of predictions can ebb and flow in a high-school player’s recruiting process, so take the Duke buzz for the 6-foot-11 Estrella at least somewhat with a proverbial grain of salt.

That being said, when the elite power forward/center picked up scholarship offers from blue-blood programs Duke and Kansas not too long ago, my own personal sense is that the Orange’s chances to prevail for Estrella had likely moved to a huge long shot.

Then again, Syracuse basketball coaches continue to pursue four-star Joseph Estrella.

This spring and early summer, Estrella has proven one of the hottest prospects across the country in the rising-senior class. Last week, ‘Cuse coaches were reportedly in attendance when Estrella earned tons of praise from national analysts and scouts for his performances at the prestigious NBPA Top 100 camp in Orlando, Fla.

To be fair, Syracuse basketball coaches have likely been recruiting Estrella longer than some of his other suitors, as the Orange offered him last August at the team’s annual Elite Camp.

Now, whether the ‘Cuse forming a relationship with Estrella earlier on in his recruitment will help the Orange here remains to be seen. His offer sheet, now at more than two-dozen, has blown up. So has his 2023 national rankings.

Those college squads that have offered Estrella, beyond Syracuse basketball, Duke and Kansas, include Creighton, Connecticut, Iona, Miami, UMass, Illinois, Missouri, Xavier, California, Maryland, Notre Dame, Wake Forest, Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, Boston College, Iowa, Providence, Tennessee, Harvard, Maine, Penn State and Marquette.

Estrella has made trips to Marquette and Tennessee of late. Media reports and recruiting services say he is likely taking official visits to Iowa and Duke in the near future.

Estrella told college basketball insider Adam Zagoria in recent days that he’s got an unofficial visit to UConn also on his calendar. At this juncture, I’m not aware of Estrella planning an official visit to the Hill.

If and when he trims his list of contenders, I hope that Estrella includes Syracuse basketball. Some of the buzz, at least for the time being, might suggest that Duke and its first-year head coach Jon Scheyer, who is crushing things with his 2022 and 2023 cycles, could be viewed as a possible favorite for Estrella.

And the Jayhawks, of course, just won the NCAA title this past spring. Estrella, who recently vaulted from unranked into the top-25 nationally within the 2023 class according to On3, has so many high-quality teams vying for him that it would prove understandable if the Orange ultimately didn’t win out.

We’ll continue to monitor his recruitment as Estrella prepares for more grassroots basketball this summer as a member of the New England-based Middlesex Magic in the Under Armour Association league.

Later this year, he will be a senior at the powerhouse Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H.