Syracuse Basketball: Stock of 4-star big-man target to explode, Duke offers

Syracuse basketball recruit Patrick Ngongba II had an eye-popping string of performances last weekend on the AAU circuit, and experts say that his national rankings and offer sheet are set to soar in the near future.

The 6-foot-10 Ngongba, who hails from the Washington, D.C., area, where Orange coaches have strong recruiting ties, is a four-star, top-10 center in the 2024 class. He’s also a top-70 national prospect in the junior cycle, according to some recruiting services.

All of that, though, is going to change. After his play this past weekend in Nike’s EYBL league for the D.C.-based Team Takeover, I’ve come across a variety of comments from national recruiting analysts and scouts that speak to Ngongba’s stock being set to skyrocket.

Travis Graf, an analyst with MADE Hoops, noted in a tweet that Ngongba is currently No. 32 in that recruiting service’s 2024 ratings. As other recruiting Web sites update their rankings for this cycle, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if Ngongba arrives in the top 30 to the top 50, if not higher than that.

He’s also making a strong case for consideration as a five-star prospect and a top-five center in this class.

Syracuse basketball faces growing competition for 2024 four-star center Patrick Ngongba II.

Understandably, Ngongba is seeing his list of offers grow. Earlier this week, he revealed on Twitter that he had received a scholarship offer from fellow Atlantic Coast Conference squad and blue-blood program Duke.

The Orange coaching staff offered Ngongba in late April. Some of his other newer offers have come from 2023 national champion UConn, Indiana and ACC member Virginia Tech. His offer sheet also includes Kansas State, Georgetown, Iowa, Virginia, Butler, George Washington, Wichita State, Ole Miss, Maryland, Pittsburgh, George Mason and Notre Dame, among others.

Per media reports, Ngongba is scheduled to officially visit UConn in mid-June. After he landed a ‘Cuse offer, he said in at least one interview that he would like to visit Syracuse basketball at some point in the future as well.

This past weekend, Team Takeover went undefeated at the EYBL’s fourth and final regular-season session at the Memphis Sports & Events Center in Memphis, Tenn., and Ngongba proved a big reason why.

According to a tweet from the EYBL, in Memphis, Ngongba averaged 18.8 points, 11.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.8 blocks per game, while connecting on 63 percent from the field and 81 percent from the charity stripe.

Those outings included two monster performances. In one contest, he tallied 18 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 blocks. In a second encounter, Ngongba produced a massive 33 points, 18 boards and five assists.

In the EYBL’s fourth session, MADE Hoops named this Syracuse basketball recruit to its All-Circuit first team, and that honor is certainly well-deserved.

For the entire spring season on the EYBL circuit, he is averaging 12.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 19.3 minutes per affair, while hitting on a stellar 70.3 percent from the field, 66.7 percent from beyond the arc (8-of-12), and 72.2 percent from the free-throw line.

In early July, the EYBL will hold its annual Peach Jam tournament to crown a winner of this year’s Nike circuit, and Team Takeover should be deemed one of the favorites to cut down the nets.

Team Takeover’s 17U roster is stacked, featuring Ngongba as well as Syracuse basketball 2024 commit Donnie Freeman, a four-star power forward who stars for St. John’s College High School in D.C., and Orange 2024 target Caleb Williams, a four-star wing out of the Sidwell Friends School in Washington who was also offered by the ‘Cuse in late April.

Ngongba is a rising senior at the powerhouse St. Paul VI Catholic High School in Chantilly, Va. Syracuse basketball head coach Adrian Autry was previously an assistant coach at St. Paul VI.

Also, both Autry and ‘Cuse assistant coach Brenden Straughn were formerly assistants with the Team Takeover program.

Freeman has said that he is trying to help recruit Ngongba, Williams and four-star guard Jalil Bethea out of the Philadelphia area to join him and four-star New York City shooting guard Elijah Moore in the Orange’s 2024 class, which is rated in the top 10 nationally at this juncture.

"Adam Finkelstein, 247Sports’ director of scouting, recently wrote that “Ngongba’s ascension is rooted in a multitude of reasons, but first and foremost is the fact that he’s fully healthy. After missing a large portion of last year, he returned for the Peach Jam and was able to make his presence felt despite not being anywhere near the player we see now. In the ten months since, he’s improved his conditioning, gotten vastly more mobile, and consistently extended his game, both in terms of his overall impact and the places on the court he’s able to impact the game from. Now, he looks like one of the very best big men in the national class …”"