Syracuse Basketball: New 5-star target selected to USA U16 national team

New Syracuse basketball 2025 five-star recruit Darryn Peterson is one of 12 high-school prospects who were chosen for the 2023 USA U16 national team, according to a tweet from the USA Basketball junior national teams Twitter account.

The 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Ohio, who received a scholarship offer from the Orange coaching staff in late April, made the 12-player roster after USA Basketball had invited 39 prospects to a recent training camp before whittling things down to a dozen spots.

Per an article from Joe Spears of On3, this roster features seven players from the 2025 class and five prospects from the 2026 cycle.

First and foremost, a huge congratulations to Darryn, as this is a tremendous honor. The U.S. U16 national squad is getting set to compete at the 2023 FIBA U16 Americas Championship, which will take place from June 5 to June 11 in Merida, Mexico.

In a recent piece, MADE Hoops scout Max Feldman projected the starting five for the 2023 USA U16 national team, and he included Peterson within that line-up.

Syracuse basketball faces heavy competition for 2025 five-star shooting guard Darryn Peterson.

All of the primary recruiting services currently rate Peterson as a top-10 national prospect in the sophomore class. To me, he is a significant contender to make a run at the No. 1 overall ranking in the 2025 cycle.

As a sophomore during the 2022-23 season for the Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, Peterson averaged 31 points, nine rebounds and three steals per game. MaxPreps, understandably, named him a 2022-23 first-team All-American within the 2025 class.

This spring, Peterson has suited up on the AAU circuit for the 16U squad of the Ohio-based Team Phenom United in the Adidas 3SSB league. He has produced some stellar performances in grassroots basketball, including one game where he tallied a ridiculous 46 points.

Peterson’s list of suitors is extensive and impressive. Besides the Orange, his offer sheet includes Arizona State, Arkansas, Baylor, Indiana, Kentucky, LSU, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, St. John’s, Texas, West Virginia, Xavier, Alabama, Cincinnati, Illinois, Kansas State, Michigan, TCU, Texas A&M and Washington State, among others.

Plus, come mid-June, college coaches will be able to initiate direct communication with 2025 prospects, so Peterson’s already big offer list is likely to further expand around that time.

According to media reports, he has visited Big Ten Conference members Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State. Toward the end of April, MADE Hoops scouting analyst Travis Graf said via Twitter that Peterson was eyeing potential visits to blue-blood programs UNC, Kansas and Kentucky in the near future.

In a new Q&A with scouting service Pro Insight, Peterson said that he “really want(s) to visit as many schools as I can right now, but I haven’t really decided that yet.”

Naturally, for Syracuse basketball to have any legitimate shot at prevailing for him, Orange coaches have to get Peterson on the Hill for a visit at some point in the future.