At this point in the offseason, Syracuse Basketball has acquired 10 scholarship players for the 2024-25 season based on departures, transfers and 2024 commitments at the high school level.
The current transfer portal window in college basketball ends on May 1st, meaning players who ultimately wish to transfer to a new school must be in the portal by then. This does not mean these transfer candidates need to enroll at their new school by May 1st, so recruitment efforts through the portal, whether at Kews or elsewhere, will take another few weeks. , which can last several months in some cases.
So far this offseason, seven players from the Orange's 2023-24 roster have reached the portal. Sophomore point guard Judah Mintz is headed to the NBA Draft this summer. That's 8 departures.
Meanwhile, five players are expected to return, at least for the time being. The C's bring in two high school seniors, and Syracuse Basketball has secured three commitments from the transfer portal so far.
As such, the Orange coaching staff has three open scholarships. I don't necessarily think the 'Cuse will end up with 13 scholarship players for the 2024-25 season, but the team could potentially add one or two more before next season.
Here is the current 2024-25 roster ordered by position:
guard
Sophomore JJ Sterling
Sophomore Chance Westley (can also play small forward)
Redshirt sophomore Kyle Cuff Jr.
Junior Jaquan Carlos transferred from Hofstra
Freshman Elijah Moore
forward
Sophomore Chris Bell
Senior Jahre Davis transfers from Delaware State
Freshman Donnie Freeman (could play a spot at center)
Center
Senior Eddie Lumpkin Jr., transfer from Colorado State
Junior Naheem McLeod
Based on this current roster, my best guess for the starting rotation is Sterling, Carlos, Bell, either Davis or Freeman, and Lumpkin.
As I mentioned in another recent column, I think the biggest remaining need this offseason is bringing in another big man to add depth. Having only two true centers is a little nerve-wracking, especially since McLeod was injured for a significant portion of 2023-2024.
The challenge for the Orange staff is to find a backup big man who can play power forward or center but wants to join a team that doesn't expect to see much playing time unless there are serious injury issues in 2024-25. It's about finding it. (“knock on wood”).
Perhaps the C's staff could focus on big men who are in the portal and perhaps underclassmen who don't expect big minutes in 2024-2025, or perhaps players at the junior college (“JUCO”) or high school level. think.
When Orange Guard target and four-star transfer prospect Dakota Leffew announced his transfer to Georgia on Saturday, I was excited to be in the team's backcourt, despite his recent absence with the C's. pointed out that there are still many expectations.
But to that end, if there's a potential need for Syracuse basketball other than an additional big man, it's bringing in a 3-point specialist, whether it's some sort of guard or small forward. I think he is (i.e. a wing player).
In 2023-24, Bell was the Orange's best 3-point shooter and one of the Atlantic Coast Conference's top long-range snipers. I'll admit he's a bit streaky.
But beyond Bell, if you're talking about 3-point shooting in 2024-25, players like Moore, Carlos, Sterling, Cuff, Westley and Freeman are the ones to look at.
But here's the deal. Analysts say Moore is a great 3-point shooter and Freeman has greatly improved his play from the perimeter. But they're both new to the college game.
Sterling shot about 32 percent from deep in 2023-24, but was better than that in the second half of last season. The cuff connected in approximately 34% of trials with limited attempts. Carlos' 3-point shooting percentage was similar. Westley was injured for the entire final game and is not known as a 3-point specialist.
With this background in mind, I would say that the Syracuse basketball staff could consider adding another 3-point shooter, whether it be through the portal, the JUCO route, or even at the high school level. . Again, that's a possibility.
The challenge here, as well as finding big men, is convincing players to join the 'Cuse for 2024-25 (and beyond), when playing time is likely to be difficult to find, at least in the next campaign. It is to be.