Syracuse Basketball: 4-star Kiyan Anthony has 'very promising game,' top expert says

Syracuse basketball 2025 priority recruit Kiyan Anthony, the four-star shooting guard from New York City, was a key reserve as a junior in the recently completed 2023-24 season for a top-five national team, and he's off to a fast start in the early part of the AAU circuit over the spring and summer months.

The 6-foot-5 Anthony, the son of Orange legend and long-time NBA star Carmelo Anthony, received a scholarship offer from the 'Cuse coaching staff in November of 2022. In late October of last year, he took an official visit to the Hill, and the Orange is currently in the lead for Kiyan Anthony, according to On3's recruiting prediction machine.

Although he holds numerous other high-major offers and has taken an official visit to fellow Atlantic Coast Conference squad Florida State as well, the sentiment among 'Cuse fans is that Syracuse basketball has an excellent shot at landing Anthony, although Rivals.com national analyst Rob Cassidy said this past January that Anthony ultimately committing to SU is far from a sure thing.

I'll be curious to see what new offers Anthony may pick up in the future, and what other college squads he visits moving forward.

Top experts say that Syracuse basketball four-star target Kiyan Anthony continues to improve.

In 2023-24, Anthony was a solid contributor off the bench for Long Island Lutheran High School in Brookville, N.Y., which finished in the top five around the country, according to media outlets such as MaxPreps and ESPN.

Long Island Lutheran was invited to the 2024 Chipotle Nationals held earlier this month near Indianapolis, an eight-team event that annually crowns a national champion in high school hoops.

The Crusaders suit up in the 14-member Nike Elite Youth Basketball League Scholastic (“EYBL Scholastic”), which is arguably the nation's toughest high school basketball conference. So Anthony gets to battle against elite competition.

During the EYBL Scholastic's 2023-24 regular season, when Long Island Lutheran went 10-2 overall and finished in second place, he averaged 8.17 points, 2.25 assists and 1.50 rebounds per contest, while connecting on 38 percent from the field, 32 percent from beyond the arc, and 78 percent from the free-throw line.

In grassroots basketball, Anthony is one of the standouts for the Baltimore-based Team Melo in Nike’s EYBL league. This spring and summer, he will play in the EYBL's 17U division.

Last weekend, while competing for Team Melo at the MADE Hoops East Warmup in Manalapan, N.J., Anthony was named a top performer by multiple national analysts and scouts.

Colby Giacubeno, a top scout for MADE Hoops, said in a post on X that Anthony "adds more polish to his game w/ every viewing. Embraced several finishes through contact & got to his spots using his dribble for profit in their two wins today."

Within the 2025 class, both the industry-generated 247Sports Composite and the industry-generated On3 Industry Ranking place Anthony in the top 40 overall. He's rated as high as No. 30 nationwide by On3. Recruiting services also deem him a top-10 shooting guard and the No. 1 prospect coming out of New York in his cycle.

Jamie Shaw, a top national analyst and scout with On3, recently discussed Anthony in a terrific podcast interview with Jackson Holzer, who hosts Locked On Syracuse.

Shaw says that Anthony is somewhat of a "late bloomer" who has seen a "rapid rise" in his development. Shaw notes that Anthony will continue to grow into his body and add strength.

Anthony continues to gain confidence and improve, the On3 expert says. He has good size, can shoot well from the perimeter and in the mid-range, and is getting better at putting the ball on the floor and driving to the rim.

While Anthony is still developing on the defensive end, Shaw notes, "He's a modern-day guard. ... He can shoot it. ... He's got a very promising game."