Syracuse basketball contacts All-Big West first-team player Keonte Jones, transfer SF

Syracuse basketball has reached out to transfer small forward Keonte Jones, according to multiple media reports.

The 6-foot-6, 192-pound Jones is a standout senior at Big West Conference school Cal State Northridge, and he was an All-League performer during the 2024-25 season.

Per the X account College Basketball Content, Jones has heard from a bevy of potential suitors since entering the transfer portal a few days ago, including the Orange, Michigan, Iowa, Southern California, West Virginia, Virginia, Oklahoma, Florida State, Nebraska, Virginia Tech, Kansas State and Mississippi State, among others.

Jones, who hails from Madison, Wis., was a key contributor as Cal State Northridge went 22-11 overall in the most recent term, while playing in the NIT for the first time in program history.

Syracuse basketball has reached out to talented transfer forward Keonte Jones.

In 2024-25 as a senior, per ESPN statistics, Jones averaged 30.8 minutes, 13.1 points, 9.0 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.8 steals per contest while making 50.6 percent from the field, 38.2 percent from beyond the arc and 67.5 percent from the free-throw line.

Jones was named to the All-Big West first team, in his second season at Cal State Northridge. Before suiting up for the Matadors, he played at Midland College in Midland, Texas, Mineral Area College in Park Hills, Mo., and East High School in Madison, Wis.

This off-season has proven a busy one so far for the Orange coaching staff. The team had 12 scholarship players in 2024-25, although five guys had exhausted their eligibility. Another five have entered the transfer portal, while two are returning.

The 'Cuse 2025 class at the high school level features four signees, while Syracuse basketball has landed at least one player via the portal in UCLA junior power forward/center William Kyle lll.

The current transfer portal window opened on March 24 and runs until April 22, and the Orange coaching staff has plenty of scholarships still available for the upcoming 2025-26 stanza.

According to reports and social media posts from recruiting analysts, those college transfers who have heard from Syracuse basketball so far this off-season include UNLV sophomore point guard Dedan Thomas Jr., Dayton redshirt junior point guard Malachi Smith, Georgia sophomore guard Silas Demary Jr., Arkansas State junior guard Derrian Ford, Clemson freshman guard Del Jones, Robert Morris junior guard/forward Amarion Dickerson, North Dakota junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff, North Dakota State senior guard Jacari White and Drexel junior guard Kobe Magee.