Syracuse Basketball: 4-star Philly targets, Melo’s 4-star son ball out in AAU

With the 2022-23 high-school season wrapped up, attention turns to Syracuse basketball recruits and upcoming grassroots-basketball competitions.

In fact, the AAU circuit got an early start this past weekend, as several Orange targets suited up at MADE Hoops’ East Warmup in Manalapan, N.J.

According to comments from national recruiting analysts and scouts, three high-school prospects who hold Syracuse basketball scholarship offers received praise from experts for their play at this event in New Jersey.

Specifically, I’m talking about 2024 four-star guard Jalil Bethea, 2024 four-star big man Thomas Sorber and 2025 four-star shooting guard Kiyan Anthony.

Syracuse basketball recruits shined at an AAU event in New Jersey.

We’ll start with 6-foot-3 Anthony, who is the son of Orange legend and long-time NBA star Carmelo Anthony.

Kiyan Anthony, in grassroots basketball, competes for the Baltimore-based Team Melo in Nike’s EYBL league. In 2023-24, he will be a junior at the powerhouse Long Island Lutheran High School in Brookville, N.Y., which is a member of the loaded National Interscholastic Basketball Conference (“NIBC”).

At the recently held East Warmup, scout and recruiting analyst Colby Giacubeno said Anthony was one of the players who stood out to him.

Eric Hampford, the national scouting director at MADE Hoops, said that Anthony boasted “several impressive moments,” adding that his “court vision and athleticism (are) steadily improving.”

Anthony, who recently vaulted into the top 60 overall of the sophomore class per On3, received an offer from the ‘Cuse last November.

Both the 6-foot-9 Sorber and the 6-foot-4 Bethea are fast-rising national prospects in the 2024 cycle. They are also AAU teammates, suiting up for the Philadelphia-based Team Final in Nike’s EYBL league.

Sorber, offered by Syracuse basketball in August of 2022, is a standout for Archbishop Ryan High School in Philadelphia. Last month, Orange coaches watched him play in a post-season contest, and Sorber recently said that he wants to take a visit to the Hill.

Bethea, a star All-American for Archbishop Wood Catholic High School in Warminster, Pa., landed a ‘Cuse scholarship offer last September and took an official visit to the Orange the following month.

In March, the Syracuse basketball coaching staff watched Bethea in person not once, but twice.

At the East Warmup, Hampford said that Bethea “had an absolutely scorching performance.”

"Dushawn London, a national analyst with 247Sports, saw Bethea at the East Warmup and wrote in part of the Orange recruiting target, “Previously known for being a catch and shoot guard, Bethea looks way more confident and versatile and has really expanded his game over the last year. Bethea connected on shots off the dribble, defended at a high level and played with a high level of intensity.”"

Tony McNiff, a scouting analyst at MADE Hoops, echoed many of London’s sentiments about Bethea.

"McNiff also provided an evaluation of Sorber’s performance at the New Jersey event, saying in part that he “showed off his toughness and growing offensive versatility during Team Final’s time at The East Warmup. He’s a well-built prospect who thrives at leveraging his upper body strength to carve up space for high percentage looks on the interior. Powerful finisher who loves to use his frame to seek out contact at the rim for and-one opportunities.”"