Syracuse basketball, in top 5, has great shot to land prolific-scoring 4-star

As I anticipated, fast-rising four-star small forward Marcus Adams Jr. from the west coast included Syracuse basketball in his top five on Wednesday.

Via social media, the 6-foot-8 Adams said his top five is the Orange, Texas, UCLA, Oregon and Mississippi State.

Only a few days ago, this soaring high-school prospect took an official visit to the Hill, during which time he attended the ‘Cuse home game against No. 6 Virginia (Syracuse basketball fell by five points in that Atlantic Coast Conference battle).

Adams, who has the option to be a member of either the 2023 or the 2024 class, has proven one of the hottest high-school players around the country of late. You can check out his latest statistics for the 2022-23 season by clicking here.

Offered a scholarship by the Orange in late December, Adams attends Nathaniel Narbonne High School in the Harbor City area of Los Angeles. In recent weeks, he has put forth games of 40 points and 50 points, among other strong showings.

Syracuse basketball is in the top five for four-star small forward Marcus Adams Jr.

Adams’ recruitment has blown up, with his offer sheet growing to around 15 lately, according to some media reports. His other contenders still in the running pose serious competition for the Orange.

UCLA and Oregon are both excellent teams on the west coast. UCLA and Texas are each ranked in the top 10 nationally at this juncture in the 2022-23 season. Mississippi State isn’t having a terrific campaign to date, but the Bulldogs do suit up in the loaded Southeastern Conference.

Per reports, Adams could make a college decision in the next few weeks. He may reportedly make other official visits beyond his recent one to Central New York.

In grassroots basketball, Adams has competed for the Los Angeles-based Elev8 Elite, which is an Adidas-sponsored program, and reports have said he plans to compete for the Compton, Calif.-based Compton Magic in the Adidas league during the upcoming AAU circuit.

To date, Syracuse basketball is still looking for its first commitment in the 2023 cycle. Last Saturday, the Orange scored its first verbal commitment in the 2024 class, as four-star shooting guard Elijah Moore pledged to the ‘Cuse.

At the time of this writing, the 247Sports recruiting service had Adams as four stars, No. 61 overall, No. 16 at small forward and No. 6 in California within the 2024 cycle.

As I reported late last month, businessman, philanthropist and top SU booster Adam Weitsman has offered a significant name, image and likeness deal to Adams. Weitsman tells me that his NIL offer to Adams is for the 2023 class.

Weitsman declined to provide specifics about the length of this proposed NIL deal to Adams, but he did say that it is a six-figure offer with incentives that could grow this deal to seven figures.

I’ll obviously continue to track Adams’ recruitment. This is my own personal opinion, but at this juncture, I believe that Syracuse basketball has an excellent chance to secure a verbal commitment from Adams.