The offseason of roster turnover continues.
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Syracuse Orange men’s basketball center William Patterson, who did not play in the 2023-2024 season, has entered the transfer portal per a report confirmed from On3. With his late departure, Patterson becomes the seventh Syracuse player from last year’s team to enter the portal this offseason as the roster makeover continues for coach Adrian Autry.
Patterson — a 7-foot-2 center from Brooklyn, NY and the Orange’s lone commitment from the 2023 recruiting class — redshirted during the 2023-24 season, his first with Syracuse.
After Patterson suited up for a preseason exhibition game versus Saint Rose, he sat the rest of the year even as injuries to each of Naheem McLeod, Mounir Hima and Peter Carey over the course of this past season hampered the Orange’s frontcourt depth.
When Patterson committed to the Orange, he was considered a three-star recruit by On.3 and rivals.com. He originally chose Syracuse over Oklahoma State and TCU.
With Patterson now in the portal, Syracuse will enter next season with McLeod as the only returning center from the 2023-24 roster. Carey transferred to Siena to join new head coach Gerry McNamara, while Hima entered the portal several weeks ago.
You could argue it was hard to see a solid role for Patterson next season, especially with McLeod’s return, the transfer portal acquisition of former Colorado center Eddie Lampkin Jr. and the addition of Donnie Freeman — who’s stock continues to get better by the day.
Patterson’s departure yet again brings another roster change this offseason for the Orange.
To quickly catch you up:
- Including Patterson, three Syracuse players remain in the transfer portal but uncommitted to another team. The others: Hima and Quadir Copeland.
- Four additional Syracuse players officially transferred to another program: Maliq Brown (Duke), Justin Taylor (James Madison), Peter Carey (Siena) and Benny Williams (Central Florida).
- Judah Mintz, the eighth departure for Syracuse this past season, confirmed he will be entering the 2024 NBA Draft process.
- Syracuse’s transfer portal additions include Lampkin Jr., former Delaware forward Jyare Davis and former Hofstra guard Jaquan Carlos.
- As of Thursday, only five players from last year’s team are currently slated to be back: JJ Starling, Chris Bell, Chance Westry, Kyle Cuffe Jr. and McLeod.
