Kiyan Anthony will play for Gerry McNamara, who won a title with his dad at Syracuse

Kiyan Anthony is running it back as a sophomore at Syracuse basketball.

The son of Orange hoops legend Carmelo Anthony revealed via Instagram that he would return to the 'Cuse for the 2026-27 season, with the phrase, "The Right Way." Heck freaking yeah.

It's no surprise that the 6-foot-5, 185-pound Kiyan Anthony, a freshman shooting guard/wing, has decided to play for new head coach Gerry McNamara and his staff. After all, GMac and Melo won a national championship together at Syracuse basketball in 2003.

For Anthony, the Brooklyn, N.Y., native had an okay freshman campaign in 2025-26, when the Orange went 15-17 overall. After last season ended, SU officials parted ways with head coach Adrian Autry, and McNamara was brought in after turning around Siena over the past two terms.

Anthony came to the Hill as a top-30 national prospect in the 2025 class. As a freshman, he appeared in 29 games. Anthony averaged 18.7 minutes, 8.0 points and 1.4 rebounds per game while making 39.9 percent from the field, 25.4 percent from beyond the arc and 62.8 percent from the free-throw line.

Kiyan Anthony is returning to Syracuse for his sophomore stint.

Even as much of the Orange's 2025-26 roster has decided to enter the transfer portal, which opened on April 7 and runs through April 21, it was assumed that Anthony would come back in 2026-27, even with a new head coach in place.

That's in large part likely due to McNamara being the new head coach at the 'Cuse, and his long-standing relationship with Melo, who hinted last month that his son would play for SU in 2026-27.

Without question, ahead of the next stanza, Anthony needs to get stronger. He needs to significantly improve his defense and his shooting. Let's also remember that he was just a freshman this past season, and hopefully, Anthony will take a sophomore leap.

Syracuse basketball's 2025-26 roster included 13 main rotational players. Three are out of college eligibility. Seven have hit the portal. Anthony and freshman big man Sadiq White Jr. are both returning.

We're still waiting on a decision from redshirt senior small forward Nate Kingz, who would need a waiver from the NCAA to play another season of Division I hoops. To date, the 'Cuse has landed two Siena transfers and a European wing who is a four-star prospect in the 2026 class.