Syracuse basketball 4-star target returns to NY to play for former 'Cuse women's hooper

Imahri Wooten, a Syracuse basketball four-star recruiting target in the 2026 class, is returning home to New York state for his upcoming junior season in high school.

And in the 2024-25 campaign, the 6-foot-5 wing will suit up for a program where he shined as a freshman, and a program that is led by a former Syracuse women's basketball player.

Wooten, a top-60 national prospect in the 2026 cycle, is headed back to the Redemption Christian Academy in Troy, N.Y., near Albany. That team's head coach is Malani K. Massey, who played for the Orange in the early 1990s and is also Wooten's aunt.

This past season in 2023-24, as a sophomore, Wooten was a key contributor at the Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, Conn. His dad, Jimmy Wooten, tells me that his son decided to return to the Redemption Christian Academy, because "he just wants to stay home right now. They will have a great team and schedule this year as well."

Competition is growing for Syracuse basketball 2026 four-star recruit Imahri Wooten.

In the upcoming term, Imahri Wooten will play for the Redemption Christian Academy in the AAA division of the Power 5 Conference. The team is "affiliated" with the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council ("NEPSAC"), according to Massey.

As a freshman, Wooten averaged about 24 points per game for the Redemption Christian Academy, according to his dad, earning a spot on the Power 5 Conference AAA All-League first team.

Massey, who also works as a media personality in Atlanta, has coached at the Redemption Christian Academy for more than 20 years. In 2023-24, she returned as the program's head coach after a few years away, as it depends on her media contract whether she can lead the Redemption Christian Academy program from season to season.

Based on the team's play in the Power 5 Conference, its NEPSAC affiliation and its involvement in tournaments around the country, the Redemption Christian Academy faces a challenging schedule. In 2023-24, despite having a roster of just five or six players for much of that season, the program finished a bit over .500 and had a top-25 rating, per a post in early March by the X account New England Preps Rankings.

Regarding 2024-25, Massey tells me, "with my nephew coming back, we are getting invited to even more tournaments. We're still finalizing the schedule for this year."

Massey noted that a season ago, her squad struggled to shoot the ball, particularly from the perimeter. Wooten, praised by national analysts and scouts as a top-flight shooter, will prove huge in that regard for the Redemption Christian Academy in his upcoming junior year.

While Wooten, a versatile guard/small forward, is proficient at knocking down shots from the mid-range and 3-point land, Massey stresses that her nephew is much more than simply a spot-up shooter. The head coach emphasizes defense, and the athletic Wooten has solid defensive instincts.

Massey expects that when her team is on offense, Wooten for example will have the ball in his hands off pick-and-roll schemes. He will be more of a decision-maker.

Wooten will undeniably prove an impactful contributor to the Redemption Christian Academy on both ends of the floor. But what his aunt/head coach says about her nephew away from the court strikes me the most.

Massey says that Wooten is an exceptional student. He's family-oriented. His teammates, past and present, love him. And Wooten is a high-character individual.

On the court, this spring and summer, he has elevated his stock within the 2026 class, based on his play in AAU competitions and at other recent showcases, according to numerous experts.

During the most recent AAU circuit, Wooten played up a division for the 17U team of the Albany-based City Rocks, a grassroots basketball program in Nike’s EYBL league that has sent numerous of its alumni to Syracuse basketball over the years.

From late April until late May, the EYBL held four regular-season sessions. Then, last month in North Augusta, S.C., the EYBL's annual Peach Jam tournament took place. The City Rocks, this past term, were one of the best squads in the EYBL's 17U division, with Wooten landing high marks from analysts and scouts for various performances stretching from the spring and through Peach Jam.

Turning to his recruiting process, Wooten currently holds around 20 scholarship offers, according to his X page and recruiting services. In early October of last year, he took an unofficial visit to the Hill, around which time the 'Cuse staff offered Wooten.

At this juncture, his full offer sheet includes schools such as Rutgers, Virginia Tech, Penn State, Old Dominion, St. John's, Rhode Island, Seton Hall, Georgia Tech, West Virginia, Auburn, Missouri, Mississippi State, St. Bonaventure, Wichita State, Bryant, Arizona State and Albany, among others.

On June 15, the 2026 contact period opened, enabling college coaches to begin initiating direct communication with rising juniors. Wooten, since that contact period opened, has heard from many suitors, including the Orange.

Per media reports, the 'Cuse coaching staff was also in attendance for Wooten and the City Rocks when the EYBL conducted sessions amid NCAA live periods.

Both Massey and Wooten's dad said to me that they think Wooten will set up an official visit to Syracuse basketball soon.