Class of 2016 PG Tyus Battle (NJ) Signed LOI

[TheCusian]

The concerns about Joseph are completely reasonable based on what was seen last season. We will all have to wait and see how uses the time until next season. I think its way to early to be completely writing him off. That said Battle is a different level recruit whom I fully expect to start from day one.

Yup. And not every kid decides to transfer when a new recruit comes in. If KJ battles him for the position and loses - I have a feeling he'd stick around and provide some real quality depth at that spot. Scoop kind of did this.

 

[Trueblue25]

Yup. And not every kid decides to transfer when a new recruit comes in. If KJ battles him for the position and loses - I have a feeling he'd stick around and provide some real quality depth at that spot. Scoop kind of did this.

immediately thought of scoop before I got to the end of you comment, good point.

 

[chugg21]

Why would you or many of the other posters like to see KJ start? He was given every opportunity and failed miserably. On JB's radio call in show, JB said that "you never know about freshmen, we never imagined Ennis would be that good and we couldn't believe that Kaleb would be this bad". KJ never improved the way I hoped and we can't afford to extend him anymore on the job training when Mike is a better option in every facet. Our best option at PG this year is Mike and a freshman recruit in 2016 unless Kaleb can learn to dribble with both hands, not pick up his dribble , shoot 10 foot jumpers and raise his hands and move his feet on defense. But leopards don't change their spots. I hope he makes me eat crow, but I won't bet on it. He repeatedly makes the same errors. Just the way I've seen it.

Good god, guess you probably don't want to ack how bad Rautins & Nichols numbers were even as Sophs then. Not the kids fault that he got thrown into the fire as a freshman on a team with no guard depth. He's obviously going to improve based on the experience he gained & if he doesn't then that would be quite rare.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Another classic thing from our fan base running guys off. Everybody's favorite player is the next recruit.

Insiders have said that JB has told Battle he is the PG and he will play 30+ minutes a game.
JB brought in KJ to be a back up to Ennis and then a stop gap until Battle. He was never intended to be "the guy".
KJ didn't really show me anything last year, particularly a head for playing PG, or the tenacity to play defense. Could it change? Sure. Will he play ahead of Battle? No.
If he wants to be on the floor for another 3 years, RS or transfer will suit him best from a ball perspective, IMO.
If he wants to be part of the SU program no matter what, God bless him.

 

[Alsacs]

Quick question what is the timetable for this kid's decision? Are we expecting it in the summer or before next year's signing period?

 

[Cusefan0307]

Quick question what is the timetable for this kid's decision? Are we expecting it in the summer or before next year's signing period?

June at the latest. Could end anytime.

 

[ORRange]

Good god, guess you probably don't want to ack how bad Rautins & Nichols numbers were even as Sophs then. Not the kids fault that he got thrown into the fire as a freshman on a team with no guard depth. He's obviously going to improve based on the experience he gained & if he doesn't then that would be quite rare.

I totally disagree. He was given his chance and led us to one of our worst seasons in the last 40 years. On the job training doesn't cut it at this program. Mike should start. He's better. He OBVIOUSLY did not improve in 30 games. G has to start at PG this year or we'll have the same problems next year. GOOD GOD open your eyes. Guys get over-recruited because they don't perform. What has he done for anyone to name him a starter next year ???????????????????????? Name one thing please?

 

[OlsenRyan13]

I totally disagree. He was given his chance and led us to one of our worst seasons in the last 40 years. On the job training doesn't cut it at this program. Mike should start. He's better. He OBVIOUSLY did not improve in 30 games. G has to start at PG this year or we'll have the same problems next year. GOOD GOD open your eyes. Guys get over-recruited because they don't perform. What has he done for anyone to name him a starter next year ???????????????????????? Name one thing please?

It's not just about filling the PG position. If Gbinije starts at PG, then who plays the 3? No way Gbinije will start at PG because he's not a natural PG. He's not going to spend his senior year, when he is likely to average the most points on the team, playing out of position. Would be much more effective off-ball. Starting 5 will be KJ, Cooney, G, Roberson, Coleman until someone proves otherwise.

 

[Cusefan0307]

I totally disagree. He was given his chance and led us to one of our worst seasons in the last 40 years. On the job training doesn't cut it at this program. Mike should start. He's better. He OBVIOUSLY did not improve in 30 games. G has to start at PG this year or we'll have the same problems next year. GOOD GOD open your eyes. Guys get over-recruited because they don't perform. What has he done for anyone to name him a starter next year ???????????????????????? Name one thing please?

No sophomore ever improves at Syracuse. It never happens.

 

[Fly Rodder]

It's not just about filling the PG position. If Gbinije starts at PG, then who plays the 3? No way Gbinije will start at PG because he's not a natural PG. He's not going to spend his senior year, when he is likely to average the most points on the team, playing out of position. Would be much more effective off-ball. Starting 5 will be KJ, Cooney, G, Roberson, Coleman until someone proves otherwise.

I think because of the zone, it doesn't matter as much as whether Mike plays the 3 or PG. On offense, maybe, but I don't Richardson is coming here to ride the pine in deference to Kaleb Joseph. Maybe I'm wrong. MCW sat his first year, but then again that was with Dion, a JR Triche, and a SR Scoop coming off a fine JR year. We'll see what happens during summer practice and how everything shakes out, but I don't see an issue with Malachi playing the 2/3 on offense and the 2nd guard spot on defense and G playing the wing on defense and being the primary ball handler.

 

[Cusefan0307]

I think because of the zone, it doesn't matter as much as whether Mike plays the 3 or PG. On offense, maybe, but I don't Richardson is coming here to ride the pine in deference to Kaleb Joseph. Maybe I'm wrong. MCW sat his first year, but then again that was with Dion, a JR Triche, and a SR Scoop coming off a fine JR year. We'll see what happens during summer practice and how everything shakes out, but I don't see an issue with Malachi playing the 2/3 on offense and the 2nd guard spot on defense and G playing the wing on defense and being the primary ball handler.

I think it's more likely that Joseph/Battle play together, than it is one of them sits. If Battle and Malachi are on the court they got 6'6'',6'7. One of them should be able to play the back of the zone with Diagne/Coleman and Roberson/Lydon.

 

[jordoo]

I think Mike is the most trouble for a defense if he is being guarded by a forward and we have another guy on the court who is a playmaker with the ball in his hands. Mike is simply not as effective as the only playmaker being guarded by a guard. Not to say he cannot function in that roll, he can, he just doesn't present as many issues for the defense that way.

The big question to me is can Kaleb be a PG who is actually running the offense and is a real threat to the defense off the bounce. If he cannot we have other options.

-Howard would get his chances early on to prove he can perform in that role.

-Mal would play alongside Cooney in the backcourt with Mike being the PG on offense. JB tried this last year with Buss who couldn't make shots but it still worked from time to time. I see no reason why it wouldn't work with Mal who can make shots.

-I could also see a Trevor, Mal, Mike alignment with Trevor being the primary guy bringing the ball up and then hitting Mike coming off the ball where he would still basically be the main playmaker.

Whatever happens it seems most likely IMO that Joseph gets first crack at it. Unless he shows no improvement preseason or someone else like Mal or Frank are just killing it, he is likely to be the starting PG.

 

[OlsenRyan13]

I think Mike is the most trouble for a defense if he is being guarded by a forward and we have another guy on the court who is a playmaker with the ball in his hands. Mike is simply not as effective as the only playmaker being guarded by a guard. Not to say he cannot function in that roll, he can, he just doesn't present as many issues for the defense that way.

The big question to me is can Kaleb be a PG who is actually running the offense and is a real threat to the defense off the bounce. If he cannot we have other options.

-Howard would get his chances early on to prove he can perform in that role.

-Mal would play alongside Cooney in the backcourt with Mike being the PG on offense. JB tried this last year with Buss who couldn't make shots but it still worked from time to time. I see no reason why it wouldn't work with Mal who can make shots.

-I could also see a Trevor, Mal, Mike alignment with Trevor being the primary guy bringing the ball and then hitting Mike coming off the ball where he would still basically be the main playmaker.

Whatever happens it seems most likely that Joseph gets first crack at it IMO and unless he shows no improvement preseason or someone else like Mal or Frank are just killing it, he is likely to be the starting PG.

Spot on right there, agree with everything you said. KJ will get first chance, but if he struggles, I could see Mali taking his spot in the lineup. I vaguely remember that Mali played some PG at McDonald's All-American practices, anyone recall this? I think platoon of Cooney-G-Mali could handle the PG spot if KJ struggles, but I would obviously rather see him succeed so then those other guys can truly excel at what they're good at rather than having to worry about ball-handling and distributing responsibilities.

 

[jordoo]

Spot on right there, agree with everything you said. KJ will get first chance, but if he struggles, I could see Mali taking his spot in the lineup. I vaguely remember that Mali played some PG at McDonald's All-American practices, anyone recall this? I think platoon of Cooney-G-Mali could handle the PG spot if KJ struggles, but I would obviously rather see him succeed so then those other guys can truly excel at what they're good at rather than having to worry about ball-handling and distributing responsibilities.

I agree that the ideal thing for the team would be KJ making a huge leap and being a difference maker out there as the starting PG. Even if he does though the shooting lineup really intrigues me. Especially if Lydon is ready for prime time. Imagine a line up with Trev, Mal, Mike, TylerL and either DC2 or Diange in the middle. I think at the least even if KJ has a great offseason and is an effective PG we still see Trev, Mal, Mike out there together for stretches every game.

Edit: I don't see Mal as a PG at all but he certainly can put the ball on the floor and get by guys due to being such a shooting threat. If Cooney also improves in that area it makes it that much easier to go without a traditional PG if they play the backcourt together. Cooney is actually a very reliable ball handler IMO, he's just very poor decision maker in transition and struggles to finish when he drives. He's a scorer not a play maker for others but he rarely gets his pocked picked or loses the ball dribbling. I hope he goes to the 1 or 2 dribble pull up more next year than going all the way to the rim. Malachi should be able to find much more success at the college level finishing at the rim with his length.

 

[Fly Rodder]

If Battle and Malachi are on the court they got 6'6'',6'7.

As much as I would like to see it, I have a hard time visualizing Battle and Richardson playing together. I'm going into this season expecting Malachi to be one and done and if he isn't - yay!

 

[HOFCeluck]

So we're going to take a kid who's been with the program, who wasn't even supposed to be the primary ballhandler last year and throw him under the bus in favor of a kid who hasn't even committed here yet.

Cool.

 

[Fly Rodder]

So we're going to take a kid who's been with the program, who wasn't even supposed to be the primary ballhandler last year and throw him under the bus in favor of a kid who hasn't even committed here yet.

Cool.

In your rush to judge everyone, I don't think you're reading the thread right. It's not exactly on topic, but the discussion morphed into Mike G at PG versus Kaleb. G won't even be on the team if/when Battle is.

 

[orangejunkie]

Malachi one and done? I have seen this prediction on the board before. Not sure what that expectation is based on. Nice player who will be at SU for awhile.

 

[HOFCeluck]

In your rush to judge everyone, I don't think you're reading the thread right. It's not exactly on topic, but the discussion morphed into Mike G at PG versus Kaleb. G won't even be on the team if/when Battle is.

So no one is saying that Kaleb should redshirt or t'fer because TB is going to take all his PT? I must be reading a different board.

O wait. http://syracusefan.com/threads/tyus-battle.30768/page-30#post-1384055

Anyone my main beef was people ripping Joseph after his freshman year. Which is asinine.

 

[OlsenRyan13]

Malachi one and done? I have seen this prediction on the board before. Not sure what that expectation is based on. Nice player who will be at SU for awhile.

Agreed. At this point, all he is is a proven shooter with decent height, aka has nba potential. Still needs to improve a number of areas of his game before he is nba ready. I think Lydon has more one-and-done potential than Mali. He seems like the kind of kid that nba teams would love. Decent at every aspect of the game right now and could be a real force to reckon with if he puts on some bulk.

 

[Cusefan0307]

In your rush to judge everyone, I don't think you're reading the thread right. It's not exactly on topic, but the discussion morphed into Mike G at PG versus Kaleb. G won't even be on the team if/when Battle is.

I think you missed ORRange's comments above.

 

[jordoo]

So we're going to take a kid who's been with the program, who wasn't even supposed to be the primary ballhandler last year and throw him under the bus in favor of a kid who hasn't even committed here yet.

Cool.

In general I think its pretty fair to say this is sort of a make or break season for Joseph with his SU career. That doesn't mean if he doesn't improve lots he won't be here after this season it just means that as far as role and PT this is the year he has to earn it IMO. If he cannot be an effective lead guard for us this season and collectively Mal, Mike, Frank receive more minutes playing guard than he does then its very hard to see how he can expand on a limited role as a sophomore in his junior season. Battle is going to be a starter IMO no matter where he goes and that has much more to do with Battle than it does Kaleb.

 

[Cusefan0307]

So we're going to take a kid who's been with the program, who wasn't even supposed to be the primary ballhandler last year and throw him under the bus in favor of a kid who hasn't even committed here yet.

Cool.

Exactly. We just came off a year where the NPOY shot 25% from three, 40 overall and averaged 2 points as a freshman center.

Our fans push too mang guys away. I don't think it's a good look for the fanbase. We trash guys when they go pro, and we trash them when they struggle. There is no medium anymore. I understand being frustrated about Joseph, but to suggest he should sit or transfer before we see how he improves just doesn't make much sense to me. I also think we need to stop trashing our own players. We are starting to get a bad reputation as a fanbase for it.

 

[HOFCeluck]

In general I think its pretty fair to say this is sort of a make or break season for Joseph with his SU career. That doesn't mean if he doesn't improve lots he won't be here after this season it just means that as far as role and PT this is the year he has to earn it IMO. If he cannot be an effective lead guard for us this season and collectively Mal, Mike, Frank receive more minutes playing guard than he does then its very hard to see how he can expand on a limited role as a sophomore in his junior season. Battle is going to be a starter IMO no matter where he goes and that has much more to do with Battle than it does Kaleb.

Yeah I agree. The biggest jump is after Freshman year. I'll be way more concerned if we're in the same place after another year.

 

[Fly Rodder]

Our fans push too mang guys away. I don't think it's a good look for the fanbase. We trash guys when they go pro, and we trash them when they struggle. There is no medium anymore. I understand being frustrated about Joseph, but to suggest he should sit or transfer before we see how he improves just doesn't make much sense to me. I also think we need to stop trashing our own players. We are starting to get a bad reputation as a fanbase for it.

Meh, sounds like every other fanbase in existence. Some people like to complain about the players, some people like to complain about the fans.

Just randomly selected the Sooners Basketball team and they had this on their forum about uncouth fans:
http://www.soonerfans.com/forums/showthread.php?185202-2014-15-college-basketball-meltdown-thread