It has been well-documented by myself and other Syracuse basketball writers that the Orange has had its share of struggles over the past year or so in the recruiting arena.
At the end of March in 2022, four-star guard Judah Mintz committed to the ‘Cuse, rounding out a solid six-member 2022 recruiting class for the Orange. The team also added a young big-man transfer last off-season.
But from late spring until only very recently, things had proven extremely quiet for Syracuse basketball on the recruiting front, frustrating many Orange fans.
The ‘Cuse, as I’ve reported on numerous occasions of late, has offered more than 20 guys in the 2023 class as well as at least 15 prospects in the 2024 cycle.
Syracuse basketball, these days, possesses a lot of positive recruiting developments.
The team’s 2023 class was always likely to be small, by design, but as tons of 2023 targets committed elsewhere in recent months, along with a few priority 2024 recruits, concern started to set in for me and other Orange fans.
From my perspective, that concern is acerbated by the uncertainty over when long-time head coach Jim Boeheim will retire, and who will replace him.
However, even with all of this as context, I’m pleased to share that as it relates to recruiting, there is buzz and excitement of late, fueled by the recent verbal commitment of 2024 four-star shooting guard Elijah Moore to the ‘Cuse.
National analysts said in the wake of Moore’s commitment to the Orange that Syracuse basketball now has a boost of recruiting momentum, and I wholeheartedly agree.
Four-star Marcus Adams Jr., a fast-rising small forward, recently put the ‘Cuse in his top five after taking an official visit to the Hill in late January. Businessman and top SU booster Adam Weitsman has a verbal agreement with Moore on a major NIL deal, and Weitsman also has a big NIL offer out to Adams for the 2023 class.
Personally, I feel that Syracuse basketball is in a great spot to land a verbal commitment from Adams in the near future for the 2023 cycle. To that end, 2023 big man William Patterson may reportedly take an official visit to Central New York later this month, per a recent tweet from SyracuseOnSI publisher Mike McAllister.
Per source, 2023 big William Paterson could take his official visit to Syracuse the weekend of the Duke game. Hasn’t been finalized yet but that’s the weekend being targeted.
— Mike McAllister (@McAllisterMike1) February 1, 2023
I could also envision Patterson, ultimately, committing to the ‘Cuse. That could give Syracuse basketball two pledges in 2023. As it pertains to 2024, Weitsman also has a significant NIL offer out to five-star point guard Boogie Fland.
Jalil Bethea, a four-star guard in the 2024 class who has officially visited the Orange, also holds a sizable NIL offer from Weitsman. Fland, rated the No. 1 point guard in the junior cycle by some recruiting services, is going to be a tough get for the ‘Cuse, but I do believe that Syracuse basketball has a terrific shot at landing Bethea.
The Orange coaching staff is also pursuing multiple other top-flight targets in both the 2024 and 2025 cycles, including recently getting back into the mix for four-star junior big man Donnie Freeman.
After going months and months with nothing doing in the recruiting department, it seems that a whole lot of awesome stuff is occurring at present for Syracuse basketball, to the delight of the ‘Cuse fan base.