Syracuse Basketball: 5-star commit Donnie Freeman vaults into top 10, No. 1 at power forward

Syracuse basketball 2024 five-star commit Donnie Freeman, in recent weeks, moved into the top 20 across the country. But he wasn't done with his ascension as the primary recruiting services continue to refresh their national rankings for the senior cycle.

This week, recruiting Web site On3 updated its 2024 national rankings, and that recruiting service jumped the 6-foot-9 Freeman to his highest ratings that I'm aware of, as the Orange signee has reached the top 10 nationwide.

On3, in this latest update, put Freeman at No. 10 overall, No. 1 at power forward and No. 2 in Florida within the senior cycle. Several other recruiting services place him in the top 20 to the top 25 nationwide, and ESPN also has Freeman as five stars.

Freeman, who hails from Washington, D.C., is having a strong senior year in the current 2023-24 campaign for the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., which competes in the country’s top high school conference, the 14-member Nike Elite Youth Basketball League Scholastic (“EYBL Scholastic”).

Syracuse basketball 2024 five-star commit Donnie Freeman is now a top-10 national prospect.

When On3, a few days ago, updated its national rankings for the 2024 class, On3 national analyst/scout Jamie Shaw said in part about Freeman, "The continued upward trajectory of the Syracuse signee's game has been apparent this season. Freeman is averaging over a block and a steal per game while shooting over 50 percent from the field and over 30 percent from three. He is also scoring at an efficient rate, averaging just over 17 points per game."

In late January, Freeman was one of 24 high school boys’ players who will be McDonald’s All-Americans for the 2023-24 stanza, a beautiful honor for this talented young man.

Without question, Freeman is one of the highest-ranked commits for the Orange in recent seasons. The team's 2024 class, small in size but stellar in quality, includes Freeman and four-star shooting guard Elijah Moore from New York City, who is a top-60 national prospect in the senior cycle but significantly under-rated, in my humble opinion.

Freeman, who chose the ‘Cuse over other finalists Alabama, Iowa, Texas and Georgia Tech, last summer helped guide the Washington-based Team Takeover to the 17U Peach Jam championship on Nike’s EYBL circuit. He has been designed the “most improved” player in the 2024 class by ESPN recruiting director Paul Biancardi.