Syracuse Basketball: 4-star, 5-star targets top performers at USA Basketball minicamp

Four Syracuse basketball recruiting targets suited up earlier this month at a USA Basketball junior national team minicamp, and all four of them received high praise from national analysts and scouts for their performances at this prestigious event.

This quartet of Orange recruits includes 2025 four-star forward Sadiq White Jr., 2025 four-star point guard Jerry Easter II, 2026 four-star point guard Deron Rippey Jr. and 2026 five-star guard/small forward Alex Constanza.

All four of these talented prospects hold scholarship offers from the 'Cuse coaching staff. They were among 65 high school players who were invited to participate in this USA Basketball junior national team minicamp that was held from April 4 to April 7 in Phoenix around the same time that the Final Four of the 2024 NCAA Tournament took place.

Participants in the minicamp came from the 2025, 2026 and 2027 recruiting classes. They were involved in on-court drills and scrimmages, while also participating in educational programs focused on NCAA eligibility, life skills and other topics.

Syracuse basketball targets were lauded for their performances at a USA Basketball minicamp.

The 6-foot-8 White, a top-30 national prospect in the junior cycle, stars for the nationally ranked Myers Park High School in Charlotte, N.C. He has the 'Cuse in his top seven and has unofficially visited the Orange twice.

The 6-foot-4 Easter, a top-25 overall player in the 2025 class, is a standout at the national top-15 La Lumiere School in La Porte, Ind. He hasn't yet visited Syracuse basketball, although Easter has said that he would like to at some point.

The 6-foot-2 Rippey, a top-25 national prospect in the sophomore class, is one of the top players at the Blair Academy in Blairstown, N.J. In late February of this year, he went on an unofficial visit to the Orange, and his dad has told me that Rippey has a strong interest in officially visiting Syracuse basketball in the future.

The 6-foot-8 Constanza, a top-five overall player in the 2026 cycle, played like an All-American as a sophomore during the 2023-24 season for the Westminster Academy in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. His dad has told me that Constanza has a high interest in visiting the 'Cuse at some point in the future.

In a recent article, top national analyst/scout Jamie Shaw of On3 noted his overall top performers at the USA Basketball junior national team minicamp. Shaw wrote in part, "The explosive athleticism DeRon Rippey showed was unique, even among some of the top players in the country, his burst popped. Rippey lived in the paint, and he was able to consistently make plays once there."

Regarding Constanza, Shaw said that he "had one of the purest shooting stokes in the camp. Standing 6-foot-7, he stepped into his shot off one and two dribbles and the catch and shoot. We will see where his athleticism goes, but the shooting was real."

As it pertains to White, the On3 expert said that he "is a supreme athlete and that is how he found his production. He needs to develop the handle, shooting, and processing, but the defensive upside is real and he is a terror on the rim in transition."