With long-time Syracuse basketball recruiting target Joseph Estrella, a 2023 four-star big man, expected to pick Tennessee on September 2, Orange coaches are moving quickly to get into the mix for other big men in the high-school senior class.
Just in recent days, the ‘Cuse coaching staff has offered at least two other 2023 big men, four-star Drew Fielder and William Patterson, according to their Twitter accounts.
The 6-foot-9 Fielder, a power forward/center, plays prep-school and AAU ball on the west coast. His stock blew up this spring and summer as he played at a strong level in grassroots basketball.
Blessed to receive an offer from Syracuse University pic.twitter.com/CaspGUp4Ta
— Drew Fielder (@DrewFielder6) August 31, 2022
Patterson, a 7-foot power forward/center, received his Syracuse basketball offer at the team’s recent Elite Camp.
He is high-school teammates with a priority target for the ‘Cuse in 2023, four-star guard Mike Williams, who plans to officially visit the Hill in mid-September.
Syracuse basketball may be getting visits in the future from a pair of 2023 big men.
In a recent interview with SyracuseOnSI publisher Mike McAllister, Patterson said in part, “I would say that Syracuse is number one on my list out of all of the offers I’ve received.”
During the upcoming high-school term, Patterson is “looking” to possibly take another visit to the Orange after going on an unofficial visit for the squad’s Elite Camp, McAllister wrote in a separate piece.
Patterson, whose hometown is in Brooklyn, N.Y., is a senior at the Bishop Walsh School in Cumberland, Md. His offer sheet includes Rutgers, Oklahoma State and TCU.
Fielder, meanwhile, was planning to take an official visit to Southern California this coming weekend, per Pro Insight director of scouting Andrew Slater.
McAllister, in one of his articles, wrote that Syracuse basketball “is in line” to get an official visit from Fielder, who is a senior at the Southern California Academy in Northridge, Calif.
A stand-out in recent months for the Los Angeles-based West Coast Elite in the Under Armour Association league, Fielder has more than two-dozen scholarship offers, according to recruiting services.
Slater’s recent tweet said that teams in pursuit of Fielder, beyond the Orange and USC, are Iowa, Boston College, Miami, TCU, Nebraska, St. John’s, Providence, Colorado, Boise State, Oregon State, Loyola Marymount and St. Mary’s.
While Syracuse basketball fans would have loved to have landed Estrella, who has vaulted into the top 20 of this class, it’s encouraging to see that ‘Cuse coaches are getting involved with other 2023 big men.
Syracuse basketball has 12 players on scholarship in the 2022-23 campaign, including three seniors. So the Orange should have plenty of room for one or more targets in the 2023 recruiting cycle, whether that be Fielder, Williams, Patterson or others that the ‘Cuse may end up pursuing.