A day after I called Syracuse out for their glaring lack of size, head coach Adrian Autry and the Orange found their big man.
The Orange were set to enter next season without a single player on the roster taller than 6’9. That was before they secured the commitment of 19-year-old Tiefing Diawara, a 7-footer from Mali, who will join Syracuse next year and compete with William Kyle and Donnie Freeman for minutes at the center position.
Diawara, who committed to the Orange over schools like Kansas State and Baylor, is listed at 240 pounds and spent the last year at DME Academy at St. John’s Northwestern. He played in the Basketball Without Borders Global Camp in 2024 and, as a Mali native, is from the same West African country that former Syracuse center Bourama Sidibe hails from.
Syracuse had a clear vision for the players it wanted to bring in this offseason, adding impact players through the transfer portal like Naithan George and Nate Kingz to pair alongside top recruits Kiyan Anthony and Sadiq White. That being said, there was still a glaring need for a big man.
In Diawara, the Orange now have a true center to round out their roster for next season, which will feature plenty of lineups with players who can contribute on both sides of the ball.
Even if Diawara doesn’t play much this season, he could feature in a Naheem McLeod role, offering Syracuse some matchup versatility if they need size in the paint. It remains to be seen what type of role Diawara has next season, but it seems likely that he’ll be the last big addition for the Orange this offseason ahead of a make-or-break season for head coach Adrian Autry.
