Former Syracuse center Akir Souare commits to Pitt
Former SU center Akir Souare reportedly committed to Pitt, following former teammate Naithan George, who he also played with at Georgia Tech. Zoe Xixis | Asst. Photo Editor
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Former Syracuse forward Akir Souare has committed to Pitt, he announced in an Instagram post Friday. Souare will follow former Orange teammate Naithan George to the Panthers, staying in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Souare also played alongside George at Georgia Tech during the 2024-25 season.
In the 2025-26 season at SU, Souare was second fiddle to starting center William Kyle III. He played in 29 games but averaged 0.9 points on an efficient 66.7% field goal percentage. He also put up 1.9 rebounds per game in 8.3 minutes per contest.
Souare’s best game was a six-point display at then-No. 14 North Carolina on Feb. 2, but he was also held scoreless in 21 matchups.
With the Yellow Jackets, the 6-foot-9 Guinea native started 14 of 30 games, averaging 2.8 points to go with 3.6 boards per contest.
After the Orange’s season ended in the ACC Tournament against SMU, Souare said he was unsure if he’d return to SU. But he opted to depart and join his third school in as many years and continue playing with George.
Similar to Syracuse, Pitt has experienced recent struggles, making one NCAA Tournament since 2016, which came in 2023. The Panthers are coming off a 13-20 campaign where they finished 5-13 in ACC play.
Souare and George weren’t alone entering the portal after Syracuse’s campaign ended and head coach Adrian Autry was fired. Fellow transfers Donnie Freeman (St. John’s), Tyler Betsey (BYU), Luke Fennell (St. Mary’s), Aaron Womack (UW-Milwaukee) and Tiefing Diawara (USF) have all also chosen their new homes.
