One of the biggest media names in college basketball appears to be feeling decently optimistic about the Syracuse Orange going into the upcoming season.
Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports released his ACC preseason power rankings. Out of the conference’s 18 teams, Rothstein had the Orange at seventh going into 2026-27.
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Rothstein has Duke as his current favorite in the ACC, followed by Virginia, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina, and Clemson. Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, and SMU round out his ACC preseason top 10.
The college basketball insider also unveiled his latest edition of the Rothstein 45. The Orange are at the No. 43 spot on that list, trailing Clemson, Georgia, and Creighton nationally.
Rothstein’s preseason placement of the Orange is in a similar range to where they ranked on the 3 Man Weave Top 50 Countdown on Basket Under Review.
Syracuse will enter the 2026-27 season with a new head coach, Gerry McNamara, and an almost-entirely different roster compared to 2025-26.
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Sophomores Kiyan Anthony and Sadiq White Jr. are the only two returners from last year’s squad. Siena transfer Gavin Doty, Temple transfer Aidan Tobiason, McNeese transfer Garwey Dual, App State transfer Luke Wilson, and four-star point guard Ryan Moesch headline the big offseason additions to the rest of McNamara’s first-year team.
Of note, Rothstein is projecting the Syracuse starting lineup to be, from one to five: Dual, Tobiason, Anthony, White Jr., and Wilson.
The McNamara Era will officially get underway on Monday, November 2 versus New Haven.
