After entering the transfer portal last week, rising junior Tyler Betsey officially left the Syracuse men's basketball program on Monday, signing a new deal with BYU.

It will be Betsey's third school in three years, as he started out his college career at Cincinnati before joining Syracuse in 2025-26.

A 6'8 native of Connecticut, Betsey played in 31 games, averaging 6.7 ppg and 2.8 rebounds. He shot 41 percent from three-point range, and 50 of his 68 buckets for the season came from beyond-the-arc.

He averaged 18 minutes a game and could have been a big part of the roster next season, but instead, he'll head west.

Clearly, they are missing the three-point shooting. Though his minutes were sporadic at times, he represented the best three-point option for this past year's team. Syracuse shot just 32.9 percent from three as a team, ranking 246th in the nation. Betsey's percentage was nearly nine percentage points better than the group as a whole.

With Naithan George and Donnie Freeman (transfer portal) and JJ Starling (graduation) gone from the program as well, there are questions about where Syracuse will find offense in 2026-27. Betsey could have helped alleviate those concerns, but instead, his absence becomes part of the problem.

It's no knock on Betsey, because he's an excellent shooter, but it's fair to wonder if his game is too reliant on the three-pointer. To only make 18 non-three-point shots in a season is glaring, and perhaps Syracuse would like to see players with a more diverse skillset in the program. 

While spacing the floor is important, it's also important to get to the basket, challenge the defense and get to the foul line. Betsey has yet to show the ability to do any of those things.

Well, if there's one thing that the Orange have, it's wing players. That should help cover for Betsey's loss.

Gavin Doty (6'5), is a combo player, as is Aiden Tobiason, who committed on Monday from Temple. Kiyan Anthony (6'7) will certainly continue to develop, and if he can improve his outside shot, he can be one of the answers to replacing Betsey's production from three-point range.

There's also just the hope that new head coach Gerry McNamara will create a system that plays better offense in general. If he does that, Betsey's potential won't be missed as much.

Syracuse women's basketball standout Laila Phelia was not selected in Monday night's WNBA Draft, which was a surprise. The senior helped lead SU to the NCAA Tournament this past season, where they were beaten by UConn in the Round of 32. 

She's now a free agent and can sign anywhere.

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