Gun to my head predictions...

[jordoo]

Some fans really need to get over the NBA thing and kids leaving early. We are fans of a BIG TIME basketball program. Its going to happen all the time and we are going to have to replace important pieces every season. If Mal somehow turns his one season at SU into a 1st round pick and a decent NBA career that is great for SU (AND EVEN BETTER FOR MAL) as its how you keep getting the highly ranked kids to come to your school. Lately we have done an excellent job at getting guys drafted in better spots than expected earlier than expected. We aren't talking top 10 can't miss recruits either. This is good for the basketball program. If its so troublesome then ask yourself if you'd rather be rooting for a MidMajor or a lower level P5 school.

 

[Cusefan0307]

Before the combine DraftExpress has Mal 53 overall as of yesterday.

http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-mock-draft/2016/


Interesting that Lydon is #13 ranked freshman. Mal is #18. So according to scouts we are getting the better player back.

http://www.draftexpress.com/rankings/NCAA-Freshmen/

I'm interested to see how the combine plays out according to projections.

 

[JOC44]

next year, if Mal is any good, he will be asked to score, rebound, pass, lead etc... and if he can do all that AND we are successful, ill drive him to the combine.

Pretty sure that would be an NCAA violation. We went on probation (in part) because Fat Rob Johnson gave Conrad McRae a ride to the Tip-Off Classic.

 

[OttoMets]

Some fans really need to get over the NBA thing and kids leaving early. We are fans of a BIG TIME basketball program. Its going to happen all the time and we are going to have to replace important pieces every season. If Mal somehow turns his one season at SU into a 1st round pick and a decent NBA career that is great for SU as its how you keep getting the top kids to come to your school. Lately we have done an excellent job at getting guys drafted in better spots than expected earlier than expected. We aren't talking top 10 can't miss recruits either. This is good fro the basketball program. If its so troublesome then ask yourself if you'd rather be rooting for a MidMajor or a lower level P5 school.

There's something else that'd be great for SU: having Malachi play a sophomore year at Syracuse, become a great college player, then become a top NBA pick and have a good career, which would make SU attractive to the top recruits in the next few years.

I don't care for the false choice posed above. Truth is, it's a little weird when a (currently) projected second-round pick is said to be almost guaranteed to leave school after his first year.

Ah well, it's out of our control. But it's understandable that fans would be frustrated with the situation. That's not excusing anyone who'd want to engage the kid on social media, but it's natural that the majority of SU fans might gripe on a message board.

 

[djcon57]

Keep in mind, we had people on this board say MCW wasn't ready, Dion wasn't ready, Grant wasn't ready...

Yet CJ Fair and Kris Joseph stayed 4 years and they were ready?

Being "NBA Ready" isn't a tangible thing. You either start your NBA career or you don't.

 

[HoustonCuse]

A lot of the angst from these threads comes from people trying to justify their position on whether a kid should come back or not. I've come to the conclusion that I know zip about the justifications that matter so I'm not going to try to make any. My perspective is this: I want Syracuse to be as good as possible and we are always better when these players stay. I also want to see our guys do well in the NBA and there are times where it is tempting to think that staying is a good decision in that vein. But that is where justifying and equivocating, etc come into play. I thought at the time that the worst decision in the world to leave was MCW, then he goes out and is hyper successful in the NBA - proving that I know nothing, so I now resist "thinking" from a basketball success perspective. Then there are the financial arguments. These basically boil down to some variation of taking the lump sum or an annuity when you win the lottery. Except much about the ultimate earnings are so unknown that it devolves into pure speculation very fast.

So all that said: I want Mali to come back because I love watching him play and he makes Syracuse a better team. If he leaves, I want him to be super successful, but what I really want is for him to play for us next year.

 

[NECuse]

Some fans really need to get over the NBA thing and kids leaving early. We are fans of a BIG TIME basketball program. Its going to happen all the time and we are going to have to replace important pieces every season. If Mal somehow turns his one season at SU into a 1st round pick and a decent NBA career that is great for SU (AND EVEN BETTER FOR MAL) as its how you keep getting the highly ranked kids to come to your school. Lately we have done an excellent job at getting guys drafted in better spots than expected earlier than expected. We aren't talking top 10 can't miss recruits either. This is good for the basketball program. If its so troublesome then ask yourself if you'd rather be rooting for a MidMajor or a lower level P5 school.

This is true, to a point. But there's nothing wrong with lamenting -- just a little -- the fact that guys you'd never expect to leave, leave after their freshman season. I think most fans do get over it within a reasonable amount of time after the decision is ultimately made. The focus turns to next year and the roster that the staff puts in place.

And of course it's great for the program to have its players drafted and to go on to have successful NBA careers. If you can't offer that to top-line recruits, you'll never get any. I don't think anyone would dispute that or argue otherwise. But the "If" in your post is what has some of us questioning the rationale in this case. Because if Mali doesn't go in the first round -- and, worse yet, doesn't really ever get a true shot at the league because he shuttered off to some D-League destination -- then I don't think that's great for the program. Probably neutral, more than anything else, but certainly not something you can sell to future recruits.

But I get your point. A related point is this: there is nothing any of us can do to affect a kid's decision so why spend any time or energy worrying about it. Of course, then how would I spend untold hours if not for the discussion on this board?

 

[jordoo]

There's something else that'd be great for SU: having Malachi play a sophomore year at Syracuse, become a great college player, then become a top NBA pick and have a good career, which would make SU attractive to the top recruits in the next few years.

I don't care for the false choice posed above. Truth is, it's a little weird when a (currently) projected second-round pick is said to be almost guaranteed to leave school after his first year.

Ah well, it's out of our control. But it's understandable that fans would be frustrated with the situation. That's not excusing anyone who'd want to engage the kid on social media, but it's natural that the majority of SU fans might gripe on a message board.

How do you know Malachi will improve more at SU next year than he would on an NBA team or even in the D-league. Certainly it would be great if Mal comes back and has a banner year for SU but him getting drafted and carving out an NBA career is not a "false choice" its a possibility, one of many.

You are correct that it is out of our control but I personally tier of the frustration expressed here. These highly ranked recruits are coming to SU to advance their basketball career. It seems that gets easily forgotten.

 

[Toga]

Malachi announces transfer to Minnesota.

 

[jordoo]

This is true, to a point. But there's nothing wrong with lamenting -- just a little -- the fact that guys you'd never expect to leave, leave after their freshman season. I think most fans do get over it within a reasonable amount of time after the decision is ultimately made. The focus turns to next year and the roster that the staff puts in place.

And of course it's great for the program to have its players drafted and to go on to have successful NBA careers. If you can't offer that to top-line recruits, you'll never get any. I don't think anyone would dispute that or argue otherwise. But the "If" in your post is what has some of us questioning the rationale in this case. Because if Mali doesn't go in the first round -- and, worse yet, doesn't really ever get a true shot at the league because he shuttered off to some D-League destination -- then I don't think that's great for the program. Probably neutral, more than anything else, but certainly not something you can sell to future recruits.

But I get your point. A related point is this: there is nothing any of us can do to affect a kid's decision so why spend any time or energy worrying about it. Of course, then how would I spend untold hours if not for the discussion on this board?

I agree with most of this and especially the last part. Maybe it comes with getting older and time seemingly passing more quickly who knows. I also agree that bad decisions can be made leading to a harder time sticking in the NBA but in general you either have the tools, drive and work ethic to make it or you don't no matter when you enter the draft.

 

[AZOrange]

Pretty sure that would be an NCAA violation. We went on probation (in part) because Fat Rob Johnson gave Conrad McRae a ride to the Tip-Off Classic.

Ahh the good old days...when the NCAA punished you for real bad stuff

 

[orangenirvana]

LOL! Oh come on. I'm sure he's not thinking that. He's thinking $$ and the prestige that goes with saying you have played in the NBA. Malachi practically single handedly gave us a Final Four. He has made a HUGE contribution to the program as a freshmen. If he leaves I wish him all the best of luck. I just can't imagine anyone would be angry at his decision. I would love for him to stay but I have not seen anyone say anything bad about Malachi's decision to leave if he makes decides that way. Let's see how he does in the combine.

I think Battle coming in makes it a lot easier to take. I think Battle will be just as good if not better than Malachi was as a freshmen. He's faster and has a much quicker move to the rim. They both have the capability to break ankles. It's all good. After the 2015-16 season amazing things can always happen!

Have you seen his tweets? It's easy to believe he's making an emotional as opposed to logical decisions based on those combined with the information our insiders here have provided. But I certainly hope you're right.

 

[CusefanATL]

http://thebiglead.com/2016/05/11/ri...e-jets-returned-rental-cars-with-empty-tanks/

Already has a mess to clean up

 

[AZOrange]

Have you seen his tweets? It's easy to believe he's making an emotional as opposed to logical decisions based on those combined with the information our insiders here have provided. But I certainly hope you're right. 727597760078327808

he's right though. We're being absurd if we root against him. I hope he shreds the combine.

 

[OttoMets]

How do you know Malachi will improve more at SU next year than he would on an NBA team or even in the D-league. Certainly it would be great if Mal comes back and has a banner year for SU but him getting drafted and carving out an NBA career is not a "false choice" its a possibility, one of many.

You are correct that it is out of our control but I personally tier of the frustration expressed here. These highly ranked recruits are coming to SU to advance their basketball career. It seems that gets easily forgotten.

The false choice was "get used to second-round picks leaving early or go root for a mid-major," which isn't cool.

The other one (implied) was "if we want to keep drawing top recruits, it's good for Malachi to leave now." I just had to point out that there's more than one way to skin that cat.

I can't pretend to know what happens to Malachi's life under any of these scenarios, but I think these things:

1. It's weird when a freshman is projected in the second round and is said to be virtually guaranteed to leave school.
2. Malachi's weaknesses (to me: physical weakness that led to difficulty finishing, inconsistent perimeter shooting, and incomplete demonstration of ball-handling abilities) will all be improved with another year playing his natural position.

On the second point, it seems there are two most likely possibilities:
a) Improve those skills at Syracuse, with consistent minutes, a lot of press, and whatever life/basketball intangible skills improvements that come from being a team leader and spending another semester generally learning; or
b) Improve those skills either in the NBA or in the D League, making some amount of money.

Putting aside all the life skills questions that no one here likes to acknowledge, it would be prudent for Malachi ask himself (and every informed person around him) this: will Scenario B prepare me for career success more than Scenario A?

I don't know the answer, but if he's told that a good sophomore year will give him a shot to be in the lottery in 2017 (the impression I get), then he'd be short-sighted to jump in 2016 to be drafted ~35th.

 

[Consigliere]

http://basketball.realgm.com/nba/info/rookie_scale

I wish the kid good luck and will root for him but this decision screams I want out of college more than it does I want lifetime changing money.

And there's nothing wrong with that although it's tough to argue that $2M is not "life changing money" for most of these kids. Key financial incentive is to get to the open market as quickly as possible, get beyond the constraints of the rookie wage scale and maximize earnings. If a player feels he can continue to develop his skills at the same rate in the D League or as the 15th man on an NBA roster and he has no burning desire to get a degree, you go as soon as you feel assured you can get a couple of years at that level of pay and start the clock. No one leaves college thinking they will wash out in two years and not continue to improve to the point that they will be an NBA All-Star.

 

[Jasoncuse]

I think he can prove it. This is a trick that the teams over there use. They put $$ in an account for the kid and his family.

How can that be ok with the NCAA? The kid still got paid then even if the money is available later.

 

[Consigliere]

Assuming you mean Malachi I'm not sure it's a done deal. Has he signed with an agent? I hope he has a strong verbal from one of the teams if he does sign with an agent.

To me that's the pitfall to the current process. Much more likely you get a strong verbal and invitations for individual workouts with an agent than without. Even before the rules change, Jonny Flynn said he signed with an agent to show he was committed to the opportunity and to prove that there was no turning back.

 

[orangenirvana]

he's right though. We're being absurd if we root against him. I hope he shreds the combine.

I'll never openly root against an SU player. But ultimately I'm always hoping for the best for Syracuse basketball.

For MR's sake all I hope for is that he makes a logical decision and not an emotional one. That he considers the wisdom from his SU coaches and lets someone crunch the financial numbers for him regarding each possible scenario. Lays it all out and determines what's best for his career based on all of those factors.

 

[Dave85]

Have you seen his tweets? It's easy to believe he's making an emotional as opposed to logical decisions based on those combined with the information our insiders here have provided. But I certainly hope you're right.

I'm not a tweeter. I find the medium too emotional. Not enough thought goes into what is posted.

 

[Dave85]

To me that's the pitfall to the current process. Much more likely you get a strong verbal and invitations for individual workouts with an agent than without. Even before the rules change, Jonny Flynn said he signed with an agent to show he was committed to the opportunity and to prove that there was no turning back.

I think he's committed even without signing with an agent. It all comes down to how well he does in the combine.

 

[Toga]

I think he's committed even without signing with an agent. It all comes down to how well he does in the combine.

Combine - talk about pressure. Millions of dollars on the line.

 

[Dave85]

Combine - talk about pressure. Millions of dollars on the line.

It's worse if you already have the millions of dollars.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

he's right though. We're being absurd if we root against him. I hope he shreds the combine.

It's funny to me how people use "I want him to stay as a fan of the program" while at the same time there are other supposed fans that dump on our kids publicly.

 

[OrangeXtreme]