Class of 2026 2026 Recruiting updates

[Hopkins16]

Now that the ‘25 team has mostly been assembled, hopefully the coaches will soon refocus heavily on the ‘26 class and we will get updates on the status of our top recruits, Jordan Smith, Deron Rippey and Alex Constanza.

Cuseallday, do you have any updates?

 

[cuseallday]

Hey, my friend. 2026 is interesting. Lots of offers out there and interest, although some of the older offers, not sure Syracuse is pursuing those guys as much these days. Definitely Jordan Smith Jr., Deron Rippey and Alex Constanza. Some of the guys from CIA Bella Vista ... Miles Sadler, Aliou Diuom and Rokiem Green. Qayden Samuels from the DMV has mentioned a visit, not sure how much Syracuse is currently pursuing his teammate, Prince-Alexander Moody. I'd also keep an eye on Dakari Spear and Vaughn Karvala. Hoping that Syracuse eventually offers Dylan Mingo. His LuHi teammate, MJ Madison, just got a 'Cuse offer. Four other guys who hold 'Cuse offers, not sure what the latest is, but perhaps keep an eye on: Neiko Mundey, Anthony Brown Jr., Imahri Wooten and Abdou Toure. The first three unofficially visited in the past!

 

[baggerbob]

Hey, my friend. 2026 is interesting. Lots of offers out there and interest, although some of the older offers, not sure Syracuse is pursuing those guys as much these days. Definitely Jordan Smith Jr., Deron Rippey and Alex Constanza. Some of the guys from CIA Bella Vista ... Miles Sadler, Aliou Diuom and Rokiem Green. Qayden Samuels from the DMV has mentioned a visit, not sure how much Syracuse is currently pursuing his teammate, Prince-Alexander Moody. I'd also keep an eye on Dakari Spear and Vaughn Karvala. Hoping that Syracuse eventually offers Dylan Mingo. His LuHi teammate, MJ Madison, just got a 'Cuse offer. Four other guys who hold 'Cuse offers, not sure what the latest is, but perhaps keep an eye on: Neiko Mundey, Anthony Brown Jr., Imahri Wooten and Abdou Toure. The first three unofficially visited in the past!

Might as well put any recruiting possibilities on hold until after we start the 25-26 season.
If Red doesn't have a good season we might have a new coach, with different recruiting ideas.

 

[cuseallday]

Might as well put any recruiting possibilities on hold until after we start the 25-26 season.
If Red doesn't have a good season we might have a new coach, with different recruiting ideas.

Totally, totally valid point, my friend!

 

[Hopkins16]

Might as well put any recruiting possibilities on hold until after we start the 25-26 season.
If Red doesn't have a good season we might have a new coach, with different recruiting ideas.

A few of the recruits are 4 and 5 stars. I don’t think a new coach will not want Jordan Smith, Constanza, Rippey and Samuels if they are interested in Cuse.

 

[Hopkins16]

Hey, my friend. 2026 is interesting. Lots of offers out there and interest, although some of the older offers, not sure Syracuse is pursuing those guys as much these days. Definitely Jordan Smith Jr., Deron Rippey and Alex Constanza. Some of the guys from CIA Bella Vista ... Miles Sadler, Aliou Diuom and Rokiem Green. Qayden Samuels from the DMV has mentioned a visit, not sure how much Syracuse is currently pursuing his teammate, Prince-Alexander Moody. I'd also keep an eye on Dakari Spear and Vaughn Karvala. Hoping that Syracuse eventually offers Dylan Mingo. His LuHi teammate, MJ Madison, just got a 'Cuse offer. Four other guys who hold 'Cuse offers, not sure what the latest is, but perhaps keep an eye on: Neiko Mundey, Anthony Brown Jr., Imahri Wooten and Abdou Toure. The first three unofficially visited in the past!

Thanks! Can always count on you for good info. I’ll start researching and following the guys I was not aware of.

 

[cuseallday]

Thanks! Can always count on you for good info. I’ll start researching and following the guys I was not aware of.

Appreciate you, my friend!

 

[orangefog]

Hey, my friend. 2026 is interesting. Lots of offers out there and interest, although some of the older offers, not sure Syracuse is pursuing those guys as much these days. Definitely Jordan Smith Jr., Deron Rippey and Alex Constanza. Some of the guys from CIA Bella Vista ... Miles Sadler, Aliou Diuom and Rokiem Green. Qayden Samuels from the DMV has mentioned a visit, not sure how much Syracuse is currently pursuing his teammate, Prince-Alexander Moody. I'd also keep an eye on Dakari Spear and Vaughn Karvala. Hoping that Syracuse eventually offers Dylan Mingo. His LuHi teammate, MJ Madison, just got a 'Cuse offer. Four other guys who hold 'Cuse offers, not sure what the latest is, but perhaps keep an eye on: Neiko Mundey, Anthony Brown Jr., Imahri Wooten and Abdou Toure. The first three unofficially visited in the past!

There are a lot of guards and small forwards in that group. I wonder if the philosophy is to get big guys from the portal because they are typically more developed. We need more beef. By the way, I am not complaining about the guards and small forwards that we've targeted, because if we got one of each from that group, it would be amazing.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Hey, my friend. 2026 is interesting. Lots of offers out there and interest, although some of the older offers, not sure Syracuse is pursuing those guys as much these days. Definitely Jordan Smith Jr., Deron Rippey and Alex Constanza. Some of the guys from CIA Bella Vista ... Miles Sadler, Aliou Diuom and Rokiem Green. Qayden Samuels from the DMV has mentioned a visit, not sure how much Syracuse is currently pursuing his teammate, Prince-Alexander Moody. I'd also keep an eye on Dakari Spear and Vaughn Karvala. Hoping that Syracuse eventually offers Dylan Mingo. His LuHi teammate, MJ Madison, just got a 'Cuse offer. Four other guys who hold 'Cuse offers, not sure what the latest is, but perhaps keep an eye on: Neiko Mundey, Anthony Brown Jr., Imahri Wooten and Abdou Toure. The first three unofficially visited in the past!

Interesting that we haven't offered Dylan Mingo yet. In those TV games, he has seen a but erratic, but has a huge upside. Bullish on Madison.

 

[orangefog]

Interesting that we haven't offered Dylan Mingo yet. In those TV games, he has seen a but erratic, but has a huge upside. Bullish on Madison.

Yeah, we didn't go after Mingo's brother either.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Yeah, we didn't go after Mingo's brother either.

I think Dylan is a better talent and even though Cuse is not exclusively a zone school, a 6'5" point guard checks a lot of boxes.

Cuse has probably seen Dylan play dozens of time, so you would have thought we would have offered him if we were going to.

 

[orangefog]

I think Dylan is a better talent and even though Cuse is not exclusively a zone school, a 6'5" point guard checks a lot of boxes.

Cuse has probably seen Dylan play dozens of time, so you would have thought we would have offered him if we were going to.

Dylan is a much better prospect than his brother, but his brother is a top 50 player in the 2025 class. I would have liked us to get involved with both Mingo brothers, but there must be something there that kept us from getting involved.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Dylan is a much better prospect than his brother, but his brother is a top 50 player in the 2025 class. I would have liked us to get involved with both Mingo brothers, but there must be something there that kept us from getting involved.

Perhaps No means No?

 

[Hopkins16]

I think Dylan is a better talent and even though Cuse is not exclusively a zone school, a 6'5" point guard checks a lot of boxes.

Cuse has probably seen Dylan play dozens of time, so you would have thought we would have offered him if we were going to.

We have offered and been very high on Rippey and Jordan Smith for quite some time. Perhaps we didn’t offer Mingo to not seem as if we are just throwing offers at any and everyone.

Also, sometimes its good to be late to the party as we used to jump on prospects very early and they would be excited to receiver a big school offer, but the excitement wanes as time goes on and new offers come in. Being selective and offering late might just make our offer seem more valuable. Mingo knows we have seen him many times when the coaches watched Kiyan play (they both play for Long Island Lutheran).

 

[cuseallday]

Interesting that we haven't offered Dylan Mingo yet. In those TV games, he has seen a but erratic, but has a huge upside. Bullish on Madison.

Totally agree. There have been some reports stating that Syracuse is showing an interest in Dylan, but I'm not aware of an offer yet. I wouldn't be surprised if Syracuse offers him, but SU is also pursuing PGs like Deron Rippey, Miles Sadler ... also Neiko Mundey and Anthony Brown from the DMV, but my sense is Syracuse is more actively recruiting Deron and Miles.

 

[cuseallday]

There are a lot of guards and small forwards in that group. I wonder if the philosophy is to get big guys from the portal because they are typically more developed. We need more beef. By the way, I am not complaining about the guards and small forwards that we've targeted, because if we got one of each from that group, it would be amazing.

Well said. One guy I forgot to mention is Asher Elson with OTE. NYC kid. Syracuse offered him last spring, and I believe I've seen reports that he moved from 2025 to 2026...he's a big man. Aliou Diuom, who holds a 'Cuse offer and is from CIA Bella Vista, is a center...but yeah, tons of offers out to guards and wings/small forwards!

 

[Hopkins16]

We’ve had success with Ennis, Brissett and Guerrier. Are we no longer trying to tap into the Canadian pipeline?

 

[Zelda Zonk]

A few of the recruits are 4 and 5 stars. I don’t think a new coach will not want Jordan Smith, Constanza, Rippey and Samuels if they are interested in Cuse.

I don’t think anyone is saying they won’t be wanted. The implication is that a new staff might not have relationships with those players, and probably would have relationships with other recruits, plus a different ‘wish list’ entirely.

Either way, I kinda doubt we’ll have a staff turnover. Red will win 3 games more than this year and AD will spin it as an upturn trend…. Complacency is comfortable.

 

[cuseallday]

We’ve had success with Ennis, Brissett and Guerrier. Are we no longer trying to tap into the Canadian pipeline?

Actually a couple of guys who play for CIA Bella Vista in Phoenix and were offered by 'Cuse last fall are originally from Canada...

 

[Hopkins16]

Actually a couple of guys who play for CIA Bella Vista in Phoenix and were offered by 'Cuse last fall are originally from Canada...

Yes, thanks. It’s been a while since I’ve heard the names and so I need to get reacquainted with these recruits their background etc. I’ve been focused as most posters, the last few months on portal guys and the roster for the upcoming season.

 

[CardiacCuse]

We’ve had success with Ennis, Brissett and Guerrier. Are we no longer trying to tap into the Canadian pipeline?

seaking of...i hope we can tap into the international pipeline as well

 

[Hopkins16]

Just looked at the ESPN 100 and Jordan Smith is currently ranked 4th, Qayden Samuels 10th, Dylan Mingo 11th, Alex Constanza 18th, and Deron Rippey 27th. All could potentially become McDonald’s All-American candidates. Landing at least 2 of the 5 would be huge for our program.

Being highly ranked, I would assume all of these guys would expect to be starters. With remaining eligibility for Naithan George and several freshmen with potential to be starters their sophomore year, it will be interesting to see how things shake out. If George is solid at the point this season and wants to return, I would prefer that over a freshman (Mingo or Rippey).

Constanza being a pure small forward might be the only recruit with a clear path to starting. It might take some convincing, maneuvering and transfer of some players to be able to get Samuels and/or Smith.

 

[cuseallday]

Just looked at the ESPN 100 and Jordan Smith is currently ranked 4th, Qayden Samuels 10th, Dylan Mingo 11th, Alex Constanza 18th, and Deron Rippey 27th. All could potentially become McDonald’s All-American candidates. Landing at least 2 of the 5 would be huge for our program.

Being highly ranked, I would assume all of these guys would expect to be starters. With remaining eligibility for Naithan George and several freshmen with potential to be starters their sophomore year, it will be interesting to see how things shake out. If George is solid at the point this season and wants to return, I would prefer that over a freshman (Mingo or Rippey).

Constanza being a pure small forward might be the only recruit with a clear path to starting. It might take some convincing, maneuvering and transfer of some players to be able to get Samuels and/or Smith.

Well said, my friend! And since we're talking about 2026 prospects, here's a new target. Did a story on him last night. Katrelle Harmon of Wasatch and Vegas Elite in the EYBL: Syracuse basketball enters the mix for 4-star guard Katrelle Harmon, EYBL standout

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

A few of the recruits are 4 and 5 stars. I don’t think a new coach will not want Jordan Smith, Constanza, Rippey and Samuels if they are interested in Cuse.

They may not want the new coach, is the (possible) issue.

 

[PauliePeppas]

Good shot at Rippey