Syracuse basketball 4-star commit Donnie Freeman superb vs. No. 1 team

Donnie Freeman, the Syracuse basketball 2024 commit, earned a lot of high marks for his performance on Thursday night against the country’s top-ranked team.

The 6-foot-9 Freeman, a four-star power forward from Washington, D.C., and his teammates at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., went toe to toe on the road versus the Montverde Academy in Montverde, Fla., as part of the Sunshine Classic.

Montverde, according to numerous high-school hoops experts, is currently the No. 1 squad across the country as the 2023-24 season is just getting underway.

IMG, per various analysts, is a top-five squad in high school basketball, and while the Ascenders lost to the Eagles on the road this past Thursday, Donnie Freeman was all kinds of awesome, and he faced some of the top prospects in the country in this battle, including several former Orange recruiting targets.

Syracuse basketball 2024 four-star commit Donnie Freeman was fabulous versus a huge foe.

Both Montverde and IMG are expected to be among the top groups nationwide in 2023-24, and they are significant contenders to return to the GEICO Nationals in the spring of next year.

What’s more, the Ascenders and the Eagles are part of a newly formed super league called the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League Scholastic (“EYBL Scholastic”), which includes 14 of the premier independent basketball academies and prep schools in high school hoops.

On Thursday at the Sunshine Classic, Montverde defeated IMG, 86-69, according to our friends over at Legit Sport Stats. Three former ‘Cuse recruits suit up for Montverde, and they are Derik Queen, a 2024 five-star center, Robert Wright III, a 2024 four-star point guard who is committed to Baylor, and Curtis Givens III, a 2024 four-star point guard who is committed to LSU.

Queen, one of the top uncommitted prospects in the senior class, was a menace to IMG in the Ascenders’ setback. He had 25 points, 13 rebounds, two assists and one block.

Donnie Freeman, though, was equally as good, or close to it. He registered 20 points, nine rebounds, three assists, four steals and one block. Freeman connected on 8-of-16 shots from the field and made a 3-pointer.

IMG was set to play a second game in the Sunshine Classic on Friday afternoon against another EYBL Scholastic school and a highly rated opponent, the Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H.

Numerous national analysts and scouts praised Freeman via social media for his showing versus the country’s No. 1 squad. Donnie Freeman, who last month signed his national letter of intent to play for Syracuse basketball, is a senior at IMG after previously competing for St. John’s College High School in D.C.

Most of the primary recruiting services rate Freeman as a top-40 national prospect in the 2024 cycle. On3 currently has him the highest, at No. 20 overall.

Donnie Freeman, in May, verbally committed to the ‘Cuse over other finalists Alabama, Iowa, Texas and Georgia Tech. In early July, he helped lead the Washington-based Team Takeover to the 17U Peach Jam title on the Nike EYBL circuit.

By the way, on Friday, top national analyst/scout Jamie Shaw of On3 published a detailed, insightful evaluation of Donnie Freeman. I highly recommend carving out some time to read it.