Last weekend rising prep star Kyle Filipowski took his official visit to Syracuse. He toured campus, experienced the Melo Center, and sat down with the coaching staff in person. He apparently also donned the Orange and did a mock media guide photo shoot. Savvy move by SU. And yeah, it was pretty damn awesome.
That’s going to be enough for hard core SU fans to imagine him running coast-to-coast after a rebound and finishing with a thunderous dunk against North Carolina at the Dome with 35,000 people screaming. There’s something unbelievably cool about those orange “retro script” uniforms.
Filipowski’s being targeted by elite programs, including Duke. Recently a CBB site rated SU as the 4th best fit for him. But fate may have intervened on behalf of Syracuse. The Orange were late to the party in offering the 6’10” big until Brandon Huntley-Hatfield chose Tennessee. Once that domino fell, SU quickly pivoted to Filipowski. Perhaps the Orange were always looking at the big man, but within days of BHH’s decision Filipowski had an offer from SU.
Filipowski has dominated on the AAU circuit this summer, showing off an array of silky smooth moves for a player of his size. He’s got a great handle, good passing skills, can run the floor like a forward, and deft outside touch. His big summer is propelling him up the recruiting rankings and many feel he will eventually become a 5-star.
Filipowski tweeted on Monday “Had an awesome first official visit at Syracuse University” and included the men’s basketball handle. He reminded everyone though, despite the pics in Orange, he’s #notcommitted.
The summer tour of official visits will continue for Filipowski, but looks like SU made a great first impression.
