On Saturday morning, via its social media, Syracuse basketball announced that its two captains for the upcoming 2025-26 season will be junior point guard Naithan George and senior shooting guard J.J. Starling. A huge congrats to them!
It also got me thinking: If the Orange backcourt plays to its collective potential, this group of guards could be among the best in the country. Like top-five good.
Love this. A huge congrats to JJ and Nait. Syracuse will have a top-5 backcourt this season. 🧡 https://t.co/LIL0cAgfiQ
— InsideTheLoudHouse (@LoudHouseFS) October 18, 2025
It's a bold statement, I know. And teams such as Alabama, Houston, Kentucky, Purdue, Florida and Louisville will jockey for the nation's top backcourt. Sure, I'm an acknowledged homer, although the 'Cuse starting tandem of George and Starling can go toe to toe with any of those other schools.
Syracuse basketball, on paper, has an excellent backcourt.
This past campaign, the 6-foot-4 Starling missed seven games due to an injury, but he also averaged nearly 18 points per game. His proficiency in attacking the rim and scoring in the mid-range is well-documented, and if Starling can up his 3-point shooting, watch out. He is on the preseason All-ACC second team, according to the league's media poll.
The 6-foot-3 George, meanwhile, was one of the top point guards in the ACC as a sophomore for Georgia Tech. In 2024-25, he led the conference in assists per contest, at 6.50. Syracuse basketball landed George out of the portal last off-season.
He was a four-star, top-15 PG in the portal, has been one of the top transfers in the ACC ahead of 2025-26, and George will also contend for All-ACC status as a junior.
Beyond those two standouts, I'm curious who will be the first and second guards off the bench in head coach Adrian Autry's 2025-26 rotation. One could be freshman Kiyan Anthony, who is positioned as one of the ACC's top newbies this season.
There are also graduate student Bryce Zephir and freshman Luke Fennell. Plus, it's possible that wings such as Nate Kingz, a redshirt senior, and freshman Aaron Womack could see some minutes at guard.
Without question, Starling and George will lead the Orange's backcourt, but if Anthony provides strong 3-point shooting off the bench, for one, it will only further boost Syracuse basketball's talented and versatile group of guards.