For the first time in what feels like forever, Syracuse has recruiting momentum. With JJ Starling and Chance Westry both making their way to Central New York through the transfer portal, things are going well for Adrian Autry and company when it comes to attracting talent. Now, it would be awesome to see the Orange pick up another high school recruit or two in addition to Elijah Moore. Well, it isn’t hard to think of someone who makes perfect sense.
When Syracuse offered Kiyan Anthony back in November, it felt like the arrival of the inevitable. Was Carmelo’s son ever not going to get an offer from SU, regardless of who the Head Coach was? Make no mistake, Kiyan is no slouch, and the above tape backs it up. 247 Sports lists him as the #62 overall player in the class of 2025, the #14 shooting guard, and the third-best player out of New York State. This is someone who feels like a match made in heaven for the Orange.
As much as match made in heaven as this is, you can’t help but worry about Kiyan going elsewhere.
Tut tut tut. New Providence Head Coach Kim English has done a fantastic job retaining key pieces from Ed Cooley’s final season and he’s also pulled in plenty of talent from the transfer portal. In other words, he knows what he’s doing. The Friars aren’t by any means the only program to have also expressed interest in Kiyan, but they’re easily the most notable besides Syracuse (Bryant, George Mason, Memphis, and Manhattan are the other four). Considering he is in the Class of 2025, that list should only grow.
All of that said, the most worrying thing about Kiyan’s prospects to play here are that based off his name alone, his NIL prospects could be quite large. The only problem is, Syracuse has been lacking in that over the past few years. If John Wildhack and company get their act together, then that problem is solved. If Kiyan ends up playing at Syracuse, not only could he make money off NIL, but how much marketing material does that provide the university? It’s an opportunity SU shouldn’t waste, but still can at the moment.
If Syracuse strikes out on Kiyan because a Duke or a Kansas swoops in and woos him over, it’ll be disappointing but you can live with that. If the program hasn’t done anything to solve its NIL issues by the time he’s committing, that’s when you get frustrated and can put his chances of committing to SU at low-to-none. But if those aforementioned problems are addressed, then there ought to be a pretty good chance Kiyan follows in his father’s footsteps.
