Late last week, 2026 four-star Slovenian wing Mark Morano Mahmutovic officially committed to Syracuse basketball, according to a release from SU Athletics.
Since the 6-foot-7, 230-pound Mahmutovic plays overseas, a lot of Orange fans aren't all that familiar with him. Let me say this at the jump: Mahmutovic can shoot, and he can score.
And that's critically important for the 'Cuse 2026-27 roster, one that is inching closer to completion. On paper, the roster being constructed by head coach Gerry McNamara and his assistants entails players who boast a lot of height and length, and who get after it on the defensive end.
One area of potential concern, at least from my perspective, is a lack of 3-point shooting and overall scoring. It remains to be seen how many minutes Mahmutovic will garner in his freshman campaign, but his ability to knock down shots from beyond the arc should earn him some run in McNamara's rotation.
When word broke earlier this month that Mahmutovic was committing to the Orange, top international hoops analyst Jonathan Givony said in part to Syracuse.com that the Slovenian shooting guard/small forward is "an elite, elite scorer. He’s basically like a five-star caliber recruit as an American high school guy."
New Syracuse basketball wing Mark Morano Mahmutovic is a gifted scorer.
Mahmutovic has great positional size, at 6-foot-7 and 230 pounds, according to analysts and scouts. In an evaluation posted to 247Sports, top national scout Adam Finkelstein wrote in part that Mahmutovic "has undeniable gravity spacing the floor, but can also make different types of shots, on the move or off the dribble, thus making him the type of threat that Gerry McNamara will be able to run plays for."
Understandably, Finkelstein notes that Mahmutovic will need to continue working on his defense, and he'll have to "adjust to the speed and physicality of the American game." Finkelstein adds that Mahmutovic has a solid handle "and can be crafty in the lane."
Within the 2026 cycle, Mahmutovic is rated a four-star prospect by 247Sports. The industry-generated 247Sports Composite places him at No. 160 overall and No. 49 at small forward in this class.
During the 2025-26 season for the Helios Suns, a professional team in Domzale, Slovenia, Mahmutovic averaged 13.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals per game while making 47.5 percent from 3-point range.
Over the past few years, as detailed in the SU Athletics media statement, Mahmutovic has put up some big-time scoring numbers for Slovenian junior national teams at various international competitions.
This past term, when Syracuse basketball went 15-17 overall, SU connected on just 32.9 percent as a unit from deep. The Orange's two best 3-point threats in 2025-26, sophomore forward Tyler Betsey and redshirt senior small forward Nate Kingz, are gone.
Mahmutovic will be called upon by McNamara and his staff to help fill that void. One more thing to mention. More and more college programs are turning to international prospects to fill out their rosters, and Mahmutovic was a terrific pick-up for the 'Cuse.
In the 2026 NCAA Tournament, Illinois went on a run to the Final Four, and that Big Ten Conference school had multiple international players on its roster.
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