Syracuse Basketball: Orange has reached out to Temple forward in portal

The Syracuse basketball coaching staff has reached out to Zach Hicks, a sophomore forward at Temple who recently entered the NCAA’s transfer portal, according to multiple media reports.

SyracuseOnSI publisher Mike McAllister first reported that the Orange has contacted the 6-foot-7 Hicks, who averaged about 10 points and five rebounds per game for the Owls during the 2022-23 season, when Temple went 16-16 overall.

Per a tweet on Tuesday from Jake Weingarten, the founder of Stockrisers.com, Hicks has heard from a handful of high-major programs, including the ‘Cuse, DePaul, Penn State and Oklahoma, among others.

According to McAllister’s article, Hicks said that he has heard from Gerry McNamara, who was recently promoted to associate head coach for Syracuse basketball. Regarding the Orange’s interest, Hicks noted, “Basically telling me they need shooting at that forward position and I bring that value to them. Being able to contribute in other ways than shooting too.”

Syracuse basketball is showing interest in forward Zach Hicks from Temple.

Temple is a member of the American Athletic Conference. On March 13, it was announced that the Owls’ head coach, Aaron McKie, would not return for the 2023-24 stanza. Rather, he is transitioning into a role as a special adviser to the Temple athletics department.

Per ESPN statistics, in 2022-23, Hicks averaged 32.3 minutes, 9.6 points, 5.1 boards and 1.6 assists per encounter. He connected on 34.8 percent from the field, 35.6 percent from beyond the arc, and 68.8 percent from the free-throw line.

As a freshman in 2021-22, Hicks tallied averages of 21.4 minutes, 8.3 points and 4.1 rebounds per affair. Reports surfaced on Monday that he was entering the transfer portal.

Hicks was a three-star prospect in the 2021 cycle, according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite. He attended Camden Catholic High School in Cherry Hill, N.J.

The 247Sports Composite, within the 2021 class, rated him at No. 295 overall, No. 62 at power forward and No. 9 in New Jersey.

His bio on the 247Sports Web site says that Hicks’ offer sheet also included Drexel, La Salle, Missouri, Richmond and Siena.

Additionally, per 247Sports, he garnered interest from Boston College, Delaware, Georgia, Harvard, Maryland, Michigan, N.C. State, Old Dominion, Rutgers, Saint Joseph’s and Seton Hall.

I’ll certainly continue to track Hicks’ recruitment as it relates to the ‘Cuse. Other forwards on the current Syracuse basketball roster include sophomore Benny Williams as well as freshmen Chris Bell, Justin Taylor and Maliq Brown. Taylor can suit up at shooting guard as well.