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Kiyan Anthony's verbal commitment to his father, Carmelo Anthony's alma mater, Syracuse, did not come as a surprise to many. However, people still celebrated the news, including singer and songwriter Ciara, who is married to Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson.
The "1, 2 Step" singer congratulated the guard for his decision on her Instagram story:
"Go Kiyan Anthony. So so proud of you! All your hard work is paying off! The sky is the limit Young Legend!"
The video she shared, posted by Kiyan himself, was made by "Vintage Vizuals" and featured his basketball journey as he made his decision to stay in New York and go to Syracuse:
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Kiyan made his announcement on his father's podcast, "7PM in Brooklyn" on Friday. Apart from Syracuse, his final list of three schools also included Auburn and USC, though he dropped Auburn days before the announcement.
By choosing the Orange, the younger Anthony continues his father's legacy at the school where Carmelo Anthony led Syracuse to the 2003 NCAA national championship. Kiyan was even photographed holding the championship trophy during his official visit to the school in October.
The Long Island Lutheran guard is a four-star recruit, ranked No. 35 by the On3 Industry Rankings, as well as the No. 9 shooting guard and the No. 1 player in New York from the Class of 2025.
La La says choosing Syracuse was Kiyan Anthony's decision, not Carmelo's
Given Carmelo Anthony's history with Syracuse, many believed that he was the one who pushed Kiyan to choose the Orange. However, during the podcast, Carmelo's ex-wife, La La Anthony said:
"I think it's important to say, like Kiyan really made this decision. I mean, I'm sure everyone just assumes that Mel put the pressure on him, when Mel told him he had to do this, like Mel just gave input on all the schools." (4:01-4:15)
Even though Carmelo only spent one year at Syracuse as a one-and-done player before leaving for the NBA after his freshman year, he made that single year at the school count, winning his first and only NCAA title. Syracuse also named one of its gyms after the former NBA scoring champion.
