Congratulations are in order for former Syracuse Orange men's basketball standouts William Kyle III and Cole Swider, who have both signed deals with the Los Angeles Lakers ahead of training camp, which begins this week.

While the ultimate goal will to be to make the Lakers roster, both players could potentially end up in the G-League. Regardless, these deals give them a chance to continue their professional careers - and to get preseason footage on tape for other organizations as well.

Kyle finished his college career at Syracuse (2025-26) after spending his first two seasons at South Dakota State and his junior year at UCLA. 

In his career, he played in 131 games. He started all 32 games for SU as the Orange went 15-17 last season, missing the NCAA Tournament for the fifth straight season. He could have challenged the NCAA for a fifth year of college basketball under the new "age-based eligibility model," but chose not to.

An excellent rim protector and rebounder, Kyle averaged 8.4 ppg to go along with 7.1 rebounds and 2.5 blocks. He shot 66.1 percent from the floor. An excellent finisher at the rim as well, he also competed in the college version of the slam dunk contest.

While he's undersized (6-foot-9) for an NBA center, he does have an extremely high motor that should help him remain solid on the glass for as long as he's playing in the pros.

Kyle did play for the Lakers during this year's NBA Summer League, clearly making an impression. 

A Providence, R.I. native, Swider spent three years playing at Villanova before transferring to Syracuse in 2021-22. Because he played during the COVID-19 time period, he had a fifth year of eligibility available to him, but elected not to use it.

In his one year at Syracuse, he started 33 games, averaging 13.9 ppg while shooting 41.1 percent from three-point range. He also pulled down 6.8 rebounds per night, helping the Orange to a 16-17 record.

The Orange did not make the NCAA Tournament in his season, kicking off the five-year tournament drought.

In theory, it should be easier to make the tournament moving forward, as the tournament has expanded from 68 to 76 teams.

Swider, 27, has played 35 career NBA games with the Lakers, Miami Heat, Toronto Raptors and Detroit Pistons. His prior experience with the Lakers organization clearly gives him a bit more of a chance. 

He represented Syracuse this summer at the 'TBT' and also played for Team USA at the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers, delivering a big game against Chile.