With a new season looming, college basketball analysts are starting to share their projections, and one notable podcast is feeling very high on what the Syracuse Orange did over the offseason.
In a new podcast, Rob Dauster and Terrence Oglesby of The Field of 68 recently shared their thoughts on the additions Syracuse made, the team’s outlook for the 2025-26 and some of the looming questions it faces. Dauster and Oglesby both handed out A grades and their message was clear: the Orange have to break their streak of missing the NCAA Tournament.
“I like the way that this roster has come together more than I thought I did before I started deep diving into it. And I think that this is the year that Adrian Autry gets back to the NCAA Tournament. I’m going all in,” Dauster said.
“If they don’t, there’s an issue because this team is talented,“ Oglesby said.
Syracuse certainly had one of the busier offseason out there. Just two played from the 2024-25 squad are back: J.J. Starling and Donnie Freeman. Eleven new players will be on the roster this year. That includes quite a promising recruiting class headlined by five-star forward Sadiq White Jr. ad four-star guard Kiyan Anthony. Rounding out the group is four-star guard Luke Fennell, three-star forward Aaron Womack and three-star center Tiefing Diawara.
The Orange also did plenty of work in the transfer portal, bringing in six players there. The full list: former Georgia Tech guard Naithan George and former Oregon State guard Nate Kingz. Former Cincinnati forward Tyler Betsey, former UCLA Center William Kyle, former Georgia Tech center Ibrahim Souare and former Montana State guard Bryce Zephir.
Dauster said he felt there was an “actual plan” this offseason cycle in terms of how the Orange built their roster, partly thanks to bringing in Alex Kline to serve as the program’s new general manager.
“They got a pass first point guard, they got shooters, they got vertical spacers, they brought in freshmen that could impact in a role off the bench,” Dauster said. “It feels like this is something that was done with a purpose instead of something that was just kind of done because they needed to fill out a roster.”
The duo was particularly high on George for a few reasons. Oglesby believes George is the key to setting up Syracuse offensively, especially because there are many players on the roster who “love to score.” Dauster believed that for a three-week stretch in the spring where he “looked like the best player in the ACC.”
Last year, George was an All-ACC honorable mention. He also finished fourth in voting for the ACC’s Most Improved Player award, averaging 35.6 minutes, 12.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 1.1 steals in 34 games, all as a starter for Georgia Tech.
CHARLOTTE, NC – MARCH 12: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets guard Naithan George (1) during the ACC Men’s basketball tournament between the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Virginia Cavaliers on March 12, 2025 at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C. (Photo by John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The Field of 68 also pointed out how George could also make live easier for Starling, Syracuse’s leading scorer last year, specifically with his efficiency.
Starling averaged a career-high 17.8 points last season and his volume was at career-high levels, but he shot a career-low 40.7% from the field and under 27% from three. A hand injury Starling dealt with last year may be part of the reason behind the inefficiency from the floor, but the other half of the story was he was forced to chuck all those shots up with the Orange lacking more creators and a legit table-setting point guard.
Some other shoutouts for the Syracuse roster: Dauster said William Kyle might be the best athlete in the in the ACC, and Oglesby had high praise for Freeman (“talented”) and Sadiq White (“could be the best athlete in this freshman class”).
The Field of 68 crew also believes how Syracuse will perform this season also comes down to the defense. Last year, Syracuse finished outside the top-150 in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom.
“I don’t think the defense is the x-factor. I think it is the factor,” Dauster said.
“Are they going to guard? That’s what ‘Cuse comes down to. Talent is there offensively, are they going to guard well enough to get to the NCAA tournament? That’s question 1A,” Oglesby said.
Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
For Syracuse, the goal is straight-forward according to Dauster and Oglesby: this roster is good enough to make the NCAA Tournament, something the program hasn’t reached since the 2020-21 season. ESPN’s bracketology does not mention Syracuse in its latest update.
Adrian Autry is entering his third year as the head coach of the Orange with a combined 34-31 record in his first two seasons at the helm. The expectation from The Field of 68 is that Autry has the players and pieces to go dancing next spring. As Oglesby put it: “you got the dudes now.”
“If Syracuse doesn’t get to the tournament, somebody’s buns are burning… because the hot seat is going to be real come about March,” Oglesby said. “This ‘Cuse team needs to get to the NCAA Tournament. They have the talent and and I feel like, if they don’t, it’s a problem.”