Could the Rochester native be returning to NY?
As the Syracuse Orange continue to fill out the 2025-26 roster, one player they have been linked to is Florida State forward Jerry Deng.
Florida State forward Jerry Deng tells @LeagueRDY he’s hearing from these schools since entering the portal:
Kansas State
Memphis
Syracuse
Mississippi State
Virginia
Ole Miss
Rutgers
Georgia Tech
Utah State
UNLV
Washington State
Penn State
VCUThe 6-9 forward averaged 7.0PPG… pic.twitter.com/UChwHOtwzL
— Sam Kayser (@247HSHoops) April 2, 2025
The 6’9” Deng was born in Rochester before moving to Texas and South Dakota. Deng then moved to Georgia in high school and he was a three-star recruit who chose to start his college career at Hampton. In his year with the Pirates, Deng averaged 10.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.
He transferred to Florida State and last season he 7.0 points and 1.9 rebounds in 15 minutes per game. Deng’s shooting is his strong suit. He shot 37% from 3 and 71% from the foul line last year for the Seminoles.
With the Orange looking for another outside shooter at the forward position, Deng could slide into a reserve role for Syracuse. And why might he be interested in the Orange. Well according to his FSU player profile, Deng wore #7 last year because his favorite player is Carmelo Anthony. He wore #15 in his year at Hampton and while those numbers might not be available, there might be some appeal for Jerry to play with Kiyan Anthony next season.
Here’s a look at some highlights from last year.