Syracuse basketball recruiting targets in the 2027 and 2028 classes will suit up for high school programs that are expected to significantly compete for a national championship in the upcoming 2026-27 season, according to experts.
In recent weeks, Inside the Loud House has spoken with numerous high school hoops analysts and prominent prep head coaches to get a sense of which teams are viewed as contenders to cut down the nets at next spring's season-ending Chipotle Nationals in Fishers, Ind.
As the 2026-27 campaign inches closer, some powerhouse programs continue to finalize their rosters along with their schedules for this coming season. Undeniably, teams in the 15-member Nike Elite Youth Basketball League Scholastic ("EYBL Scholastic") will contend for bids to the Chipotle Nationals, an annual event that had 10 participants last season.
However, there are a handful of juggernaut squads outside of the Nike-sponsored EYBL Scholastic that will also likely be in the hunt to win the Chipotle Nationals. Inside the Loud House will share below some of the contenders (this list isn't meant to be fully exhaustive), and also which Orange recruits suit up for the programs mentioned here.
Syracuse basketball targets who will vie for appearances in the Chipotle Nationals.
Jordan Divens, the national basketball editor at MaxPreps, is one of the best authorities out there in high school hoops. In a recent message to Inside the Loud House, he noted eight teams that we should pay attention to as far as the Chipotle Nationals are concerned. They are:
•AZ Compass Prep School in Chandler, Ariz. (EYBL Scholastic member)
•CIA Bella Vista in Phoenix (EYBL Scholastic member)
•Masters Academy International in Stow, Mass. (EYBL Scholastic member)
•Montverde Academy in Montverde, Fla. (EYBL Scholastic member)
•Dynamic Prep in Carrollton, Texas
•IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.
•Prolific Prep in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
•Southeastern Preparatory Academy in Orlando, Fla.
This past spring, at the 2026 Chipotle Nationals, schools that made the semifinals were No. 1 seed AZ Compass Prep, No. 2 seed Dynamic Prep, No. 3 seed CIA Bella Vista and No. 5 seed Montverde. CIA Bella Vista won the tournament, beating Montverde in the title game.
The legendary Jason Smith, who after 26 seasons leading the Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H., is now the head coach of the newly formed Masters Academy International, told Inside the Loud House in a recent interview that a few teams that impress him are CIA Bella Vista, Montverde and also the Wasatch Academy in Mount Pleasant, Utah, another EYBL Scholastic member.
Steve Smith, the former longtime head coach at EYBL Scholastic school Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., where he won nine national titles, is currently the commissioner of the EYBL Scholastic. In a recent interview with Inside the Loud House, he said that some programs he's monitoring for 2026-27 include AZ Compass Prep, CIA Bella Vista, Montverde and Wasatch, which also made last April's Chipotle Nationals.
In a telephone interview with Inside the Loud House this week, Pete Kaffey, the head coach of AZ Compass Prep, said that two EYBL Scholastic schools that he thinks are flying a bit under the radar are the Faith Family Academy in Dallas and Iowa United Prep in Des Moines, Iowa.
"You can never count a Jason Smith-led team out," Kaffey said, adding that he thinks the La Lumiere School in La Porte, Ind., and Long Island Lutheran High School in Brookville, N.Y., two additional EYBL Scholastic members, have good 2026-27 rosters and great head coaches.
Ryan Devlin, the new head coach at Oak Hill, told Inside the Loud House in a telephone interview on Wednesday that he believes IMG and Prolific Prep likely have the two most talented rosters in the country, on paper, entering the 2026-27 campaign. Inside the Loud House spoke with new IMG head coach Jackson Johnson earlier this week and will have a story out soon stemming from that interview.
One other team brought up by several head coaches and analysts is the Spire Academy in Geneva, Ohio, whose head coach is the legendary Kevin Boyle. Spire, an Adidas-sponsored school, isn't in the EYBL Scholastic in 2026-27 after being in the league last season.
So, of the teams noted above, which ones contain Syracuse basketball recruits?
CIA Bella Vista
The Orange is prioritizing 2027 five-star wing/forward Ahmed Nur, who began his official visit to the 'Cuse on Wednesday. Syracuse coaches have also offered three 2028 prospects who will play for the Bears this coming season. They are five-star point guard Liam Mitakaro, four-star forward Isaiah Clarke and four-star forward Settimo Yugu.
IMG
Will Brunson, a 2028 five-star wing/small forward, will compete for the Ascenders in 2026-27. He holds a re-offer from first-year head coach Gerry McNamara and his SU staff, and Brunson unofficially visited the Orange last December. Johnson, the new head coach at IMG, says that Brunson is an "electric-scoring talent ... a ferocious worker ... and he doesn't really have a ceiling."
La Lumiere
A standout for the Lakers is 2027 four-star guard Devin Cleveland, who has the 'Cuse in his top seven. He has said that he plans to officially visit all his finalists before making a college decision, but a trip to Syracuse basketball hasn't been publicly announced.
Masters Academy International
Kevin Wheatley Jr., a 2028 five-star wing, followed Jason Smith from Brewster to the newly formed Masters Academy International. The new Orange staff has re-offered Wheatley, who unofficially visited the team last December. "He's an unbelievable young man," Smith recently said of Wheatley to Inside the Loud House. "Extremely talented. Explosive athlete. Excellent perimeter shooter and can guard three positions."
Montverde
Well-respected head coach and DMV legend Steve Turner leads the Eagles. Two 2028 five-star targets for Syracuse basketball are Canadian wing Isaiah Hamilton and fellow wing Xavier Skipworth, who, like Turner, hails from the Washington, D.C., to Baltimore corridor.
Prolific Prep
Nasir Anderson, a five-star point guard and a top-10 national prospect in the 2027 class, recently included the Orange in his top 10. 'Cuse coaches are working to get Anderson on campus for an official visit at some point, Inside the Loud House has reported.
Southeastern Prep
Ka'Shawn Gill, a 2028 four-star combo guard offered by Syracuse basketball last month, recently said that he would transfer to Southeastern Prep, which plays in the Grind Session, alongside Prolific Prep. Last week, word came out that Gill and other members of the Southeastern Prep roster will also play in the Atlanta-based league Overtime Elite under the name RWE.
Spire
On Wednesday night, Inside the Loud House reported that Syracuse basketball 2027 priority target Moussa Kamissoko, a five-star wing/small forward, is transferring from Long Island Lutheran to Spire. Kamissoko is expected to take an official visit to SU from September 3 to September 4. Spire's 2026-27 roster also includes 2027 five-star point guard King Gibson, a former 'Cuse recruit, and 2029 five-star wing David Johnson, a Rochester, N.Y., native who held an offer from the former Orange staff under then-head coach Adrian Autry.
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