Syracuse has swung for the fences this summer. In addition to landing Kamari Lands and Justin Taylor, the Orange have been shopping for even more talent. In a world where the transfer portal spins like Penn Station at rush hour, the SU coaching staff hasn’t rested on its laurels. You can never have too many good players, assuming some of them will leave. One of the pieces SU has attempted to attract is star guard Chance Westry.
He took an official visit to Syracuse this summer, and 247 Sports pegs SU as the only school Westry is “warm” on. Many have pointed to the Orange as one of the favorites. He’s a 4-star combo guard from the Phoenix area, with offers from LSU, Auburn, Nebraska and Arizona State and others. He’s a top 30 prospect in the Class of ’22. But not everyone thinks SU will win this race. Jamie Shaw at Rivals thinks Westry is headed to the Bayou.
The breakdown of Westry as a player at the next level? Here’s Rob Cassidy of Rivals at Peach Jam: “He has had a bit of an up-and-down day, which has been a microcosm of his summer… Ideally, you‚Äôd like Westry to become a more consistent 3-point shooter, but when he‚Äôs going well on the glass and getting to the bucket almost at will as he was on Saturday morning, putting his shooting under the microscope feels like splitting hairs… Westry‚Äôs upside remains both massive and obvious, but he‚Äôll need to become more consistent in the year ahead.”
Cassidy believes Syracuse and Auburn are strong on Westry, but that LSU is in the mix. Will Wade is putting on a full court press, knowing Westry would be a centerpeice to build around. Another option is turning pro and earning money before making the jump to the NBA. There’s no clear cut direction anyone seems to agree on with Westry.
LSU went 19-10 last season and lost in the 2nd round of the tournament in a thriller against Michigan. Auburn has turned into a recruiting rival with SU, as Bruce Pearl is always effective in attracting talent. Wade was in trouble with the NCAA for the Adidas scandal, but the FBI may have cooled on punishing him since NIL has opened up paying players legally. Wade has been fleshing out his staff with hires in recent weeks, and gets Darius Days back to a deep team. Will Wetsry want to join a class that already has two primary offensive threats like the Orange have, or might he want to join the SEC ranks of teams that are perennial tourney teams. The decision seems to have plenty of different guesses from across the analysts nationwide.
