Syracuse Basketball: Adrian Autry’s first two prep commits are 5 stars – exceptional

Syracuse basketball head coach Adrian Autry took over the program from the Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim in March of 2023.

Autry’s first two verbal commits, at the high school level, since being handed the reins on the Hill are both five-star prospects, one in the 2024 class and one in the 2025 cycle.

Given that, in recent years since moving from the Big East Conference to the Atlantic Coast Conference during the 2013-14 campaign, the ‘Cuse has somewhat been a tad “down” in various recruiting cycles, that Autry has reeled in two five-star commits is quite a positive development in my book.

Much as new Syracuse football head coach Fran Brown is recruiting at a high level in that sport, I believe that Autry and his top-flight staff are trending in a stellar direction as it pertains to recruiting in hoops.

Now, recruiting is one thing. Winning games is another. That being said, in his first season as the team’s head coach, Autry guided the Orange to a 20-12 overall mark in 2023-24, the inaugural instance that the ‘Cuse had sported at least 20 regular-season wins in a decade.

A bit of context. The Orange had one 2023 commit at the high school level, three-star big man William Patterson from New York City. Yet Patterson, who is in the transfer portal, verbally committed to the ‘Cuse in February of 2023, before Autry became head coach.

In the team’s 2024 class, Syracuse basketball has two signees. They are four-star shooting guard Elijah Moore from New York City and five-star power forward Donnie Freeman from Washington, D.C.

Again, regarding Moore, he verbally committed to the Orange in late January of last year. He did “reaffirm” his commitment once Autry took over, but as far as I’m concerned, he still pledged to the program when Boeheim was in charge.

In the case of Freeman, though, he verbally committed to the ‘Cuse in May of 2023, after Autry became the team’s head coach.

Amid a sensational senior season in 2023-24 suiting up for the powerhouse IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., Freeman in recent months has skyrocketed in the 2024 national rankings. As he prepares to join the Orange, he is a consensus five-star, top-15 national prospect rated as high as No. 6 overall by several recruiting Web sites.

Additionally, numerous recruiting services deem Freeman as the country’s No. 1 power forward in the 2024 class.

This brings us to the second high school player who has verbally pledged to Syracuse basketball after Autry became the head coach.

On Wednesday night, 2025 five-star forward Sadiq White Jr. from Charlotte, N.C., a consensus top-35 national prospect in the rising senior class, verbally committed to the Orange over Alabama, Southern California, Georgetown, LSU, Tennessee and Texas.

White, who had a tremendous junior campaign for the nationally ranked Myers Park High School in Charlotte, received a scholarship offer from the ‘Cuse in late April of 2023. Syracuse basketball coaches, for a long time, have prioritized him in the 2025 cycle.

Now, I want to note here that I’m not saying Autry wasn’t involved in the recruitments of guys such as Patterson and Moore. It’s also important to stress that Autry’s top-flight assistants were also pivotal in landing both Freeman and White.

Additionally, this off-season, the entire Orange staff has played a key role in securing commitments from three college transfers who are rated four stars, and they are Hofstra junior point guard Jaquan Carlos, Delaware senior forward Jyáre Davis, and Colorado senior center Eddie Lampkin Jr.

Still, since Autry was named the Syracuse basketball head coach, his first two official pledges at the high school level are Freeman and White. Currently, the industry-generated 247Sports Composite has White as five stars, No. 24 overall, No. 8 at power forward and No. 1 in North Carolina within the 2025 cycle.

I know that many ‘Cuse fans are eager to see the squad return to the NCAA Tournament following a three-year absence. I’m there, too. Yet at the same time, what Autry and his staff are doing on the recruiting trail is exquisite.

White is a massively huge start for the team’s 2025 class, and I could envision perhaps one or two more rising high school seniors potentially joining him in this Syracuse basketball cycle in the coming months.