On Saturday, Syracuse basketball got a commitment from four-star transfer guard Garwey Dual, who is a junior at Southland Conference member McNeese State. Dual is known as a strong defender, something that was echoed by noted college hoops analytics guru Evan Miyakawa.
In a post on X following the news that Dual had pledged to the Orange, Miyakawa wrote: "Garwey Dual has a better projected rating than any player Syracuse had last season, so this is a great pickup for Cuse. ... Dual is in the top 5 projected defenders in the portal among guards. Really good steal rate, and had a big impact on McNeese defensively while on the floor."
Garwey Dual has a better projected rating than any player Syracuse had last season, so this is a great pickup for Cuse.
— Evan Miyakawa (@EvanMiya) April 11, 2026
Dual is in the top 5 projected defenders in the portal among guards. Really good steal rate, and had a big impact on McNeese defensively while on the floor. https://t.co/feO9aaLroL
Hopefully, Orange hoops fanatics have seen Miyakawa's post on X. I say this because some SU fans are bemoaning the 'Cuse transfer portal class this offseason, at least for the time being. Yes, Syracuse basketball has yet to land a transfer from a power conference program, but it does have commitments from two transfers who are ranked as four stars in the portal.
Plus, as I've opined many times, it's not just about recruiting rankings and "stars." It's about fit. Sadiq White Jr., a freshman forward at the 'Cuse, will be an excellent fit in new head coach Gerry McNamara's system, I believe. The same goes for the 6-foot-5, 205-pound Garwey, who previously played for Big East Conference members Seton Hall and Providence.
Syracuse basketball's incoming transfer class is promising so far.
McNamara has said that he wants players who give maximum effort on every play, and he wants his guys to be gritty and tough, while getting after it defensively. Garwey seems to fit that mold.
During his junior term at McNeese State, Dual played quite well in the Cowboys' NCAA Tournament game. For the season, he averaged 8.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.6 steals per contest while making 45.6 percent from the field, 31.6 percent from 3-point range and 76.4 percent from the free-throw line. He resided on the Southland Conference's All-Defensive team in 2025-26.
The transfer portal opened on April 7 and will run through April 21. The Orange has three transfer commits so far. They are Dual, Siena four-star sophomore guard Gavin Doty and Siena junior big man Tasman Goodrick.
Miyakawa's Web site, EvanMiya.com, currently ranks SU's incoming transfer class at No. 6 nationally. That's a solid start for McNamara and his staff.