Former Syracuse center William Kyle III signs with Los Angeles Lakers
In his lone year with Syracuse in 2025-26, William Kyle III averaged 8.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game. Zoe Xixis | Asst. Photo Editor
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Former Syracuse center William Kyle III has signed an Exhibit 10 deal as an undrafted free agent with the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported Thursday. Kyle is SU’s only player from last season to sign with an NBA team.
Former SU forward Maliq Brown — who played for the Orange from 2022-24 before transferring to Duke — was chosen 44th overall by the San Antonio Spurs. Former Syracuse guards Quadir Copeland and Chris Bell also signed with the Rockets and Pelicans, respectively, after going undrafted.
Kyle showed out this past season after transferring from UCLA to Syracuse. He averaged 8.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and an absurd 2.5 blocks per game — which ranked eighth in the country — as SU’s starting center.
The breakout came after two years at South Dakota State, with Kyle’s best year coming as a sophomore in 2023-24. That season, he averaged 13.1 points and 6.6 rebounds and was named the Summit League Defensive Player of the Year. Following a jump to UCLA, though, Kyle didn’t start a single game and averaged just 9.6 minutes per contest.
He reestablished himself at Syracuse this year. Despite being undersized, standing 6-foot-9, Kyle displayed NBA potential and was one of few bright spots on an SU team that finished 15-17 and bowed out of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament in the first round.
“(Kyle) very much is the typical modern big that plays in the NBA, or has a chance to play in the NBA, and would be someone that teams could really benefit from short-term and long-term,” former Syracuse general manager Alex Kline told The Daily Orange in December.
With Kyle’s departure and Tiefing Diawara transferring to USF, the Orange will rely on Appalachian State transfer Luke Wilson and freshmen Abdramane Siby and Iker Martinez to replenish its frontcourt next year.
