Syracuse basketball coaches putting on full-court press for 5-star power forward

The Syracuse basketball staff appears to be prioritizing a five-star power forward from the Philadelphia area in the 2027 cycle.

Earlier this week, amid the fall recruiting period, Orange coaches were in for Zion Green, who as a junior is suiting up for a prep-school powerhouse in the talent-rich Washington, D.C., region.

The 6-foot-8 Green, a five-star, top-25 national prospect according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite, received a scholarship offer from the Orange staff in late June of last year. He is one at least 15 prospects in the 2027 cycle who have landed a 'Cuse offer to date in this class.

In late August of this year, Green unofficially visited the Syracuse basketball program.

Syracuse basketball is recruiting 2027 five-star power forward Zion Green hard.

In early September, the fall recruiting period began. This means, in addition to hosting recruits on the SU campus for visits, the Orange coaching staff is out and about watching targets at high school open gyms and also conducting in-home visits.

Green is among various recruiting targets in several classes for whom the 'Cuse has been in attendance over the past month or so. For the 2025-26 season, he has transferred from Camden High School in Camden, N.J., to Mt. Zion Prep in Lanham, Md.

Mt. Zion Prep was a top-25 team in 2024-25 and should be excellent again in the upcoming campaign, where it will compete in the prestigious Grind Session. The Orange staff, including head coach Adrian Autry and assistant coach Brenden Straughn, has deep recruiting ties to the DMV.

To date, according to recruiting Web sites, Green's full scholarship offer sheet includes schools such as Mississippi State, Kansas State, Seton Hall, Penn State, UTEP, Maryland, Michigan, Oklahoma State, Villanova, Wake Forest and Washington.

Over the summer, 2027 four-star point guard Jacob Canton also transferred to Mt. Zion Prep. The 6-foot-2 Canton previously played at the Rutgers Preparatory School in Somerset, N.J. In late August of 2024, Canton competed at the Orange's annual Elite Camp.

After the 2027 contact period opened on June 15, enabling college coaches to initiate direct communication with high school juniors, Canton heard from the Syracuse basketball staff.

It's still somewhat early for the Orange's 2027 recruiting efforts, but a few names to monitor include Green, four-star wing/small forward Clyde Walters, four-star point guard Anderson Diaz, four-star point guard J'Lon Lyons, four-star big man big man Caleb Ourigou and four-star center Theo Edema, among others.