Class of 2016 SG/SF Andrew White (VA; Grad Transfer from Nebraska)

[tee1222]

I smell a new TV show "The Love Broat". This is not your parents love boat, bromance is in the air.

 

[Dave85]

I have a feeling JB is going to again teach us a lesson next season in the difference between who starts and who plays the most mins. Ie its not the same thing. Just a hunch...

I tried to find a quote from JB about this. I believe the first time I heard this comment was in reference to talking about MCW coming off the bench. JB said, and I paraphase, "the starters are the players who get the most minutes." But I would not trust my memory. It's a miracle I can even find my drugs let alone take them.

 

[jordoo]

I was waiting for you to post that. Lol

 

[Dave85]

Nunes article:

Andrew White III Could Take Syracuse From Tournament Team to Final Four Contender

"Should White decide to commit to Syracuse, something tells me he'll be challenging Matt Moyer for that No. 3..."

I hope Moyer doesn't get discourage if White shows up. Moyer is going to be a superstar for us. I'm not sure it's going to be his freshmen year. But he may be the next Lydon on the team.

 

[Jack Hall]

Nunes article:

Andrew White III Could Take Syracuse From Tournament Team to Final Four Contender

"Should White decide to commit to Syracuse, something tells me he'll be challenging Matt Moyer for that No. 3..."

I hope Moyer doesn't get discourage if White shows up. Moyer is going to be a superstar for us. I'm not sure it's going to be his freshmen year. But he may be the next Lydon on the team.

May not mean much to these guys, i obviously dont know. But if i was some freshman, (again assuming White...) i would be pumped to take part in the high level 5 on 5 intrasquad scrimmages SU would have nect year. Should be tremendous development for these young men...A guy like Moyer will have the chance to play with and against perhaps 4 nba prospects (Lydon, Battle, White, Pascal, etc)...

 

[IthacaMatt]

What does Mr. White want? Seems to me that it's likely not that difficult to figure out. He was already the man at Nebraska but something wasn't quite right.

The dude wants a significant role to showcase his talent to the NBA while wanting to be on a team that will get attention next year rather than being a bottom feeder program that no one cares to watch. His camp has made it pretty clear that this move is for NBA reasons. This isn't about him getting a better college experience. That said, Syracuse fits very well.

Exactly. He has already been "The Man" at Nebraska, and the NBA went "uh, so what?" So he needs to play on a bigger stage, on a successful team that is going to be in the news and in the tournament. That will get him the visibility he's looking for.

 

[Jack Hall]

Exactly. He has already been "The Man" at Nebraska, and the NBA went "uh, so what?" So he needs to play on a bigger stage, on a successful team that is going to be in the news and in the tournament. That will get him the visibility he's looking for.

I hope he comes here for whatever reason. But many times that line of thinking (ie you need to go to a program that will get you to the nba) is crap. 90% of the kentucky kids would go to the nba regardless of whether they spent 1-2 years listening to cals pump and dump. Likewise, If say Mal is going to stick in the nba, its not solely going to be because he went to SU for 1 year lol...or that one game he had in the elite 8...Does uk and cal deserve credit for their crazy nba numbers? Does JB and SU deserve credit for their recent nba guys? Absolutely. But still imo its slightly overrated...not to sound like a broken record , the best thing for these guys like White who want to find out if they are legit nba prospects is to play with and against other nba prospects on as regular a basis as possible...But thats just the finding out part. Most of the uk kids and guys like Dion, MCW, Mal?, arrived on campus having nba type talent...and yes at a duk or a uk you can deveop that talent as quickly as possibly. Hopefully SU too

 

[IthacaMatt]

Andrew White makes us a preseason top 10 team. The ACC would have 4 top 10 teams. Duke, Virginia, North Carolina, Syracuse.

This get would make a legit NC contender. He would provide the Malachi/Wes Johnson offense.

Battle gets the PG. Howard backup PG minutes.
Gillon/White get the SG minutes.
White/Lydon split the SF minutes.
Lydon/Roberson get the PF minutes.
Coleman/Chuwku get the C minutes.
Thompson/Moyer get an education in Boeheim U and start in 2017.

No, sorry, but Gillon doesn't start at shooting guard. When he and Battle are in there together, Gillon handles the ball. When White (if we get him) and Battle are in at guard, then Battle handles the ball. Frank becomes the 4th guard, who will come in when Battle gets a breather. The order, in my opinion, is this: (1) Battle starts at PG, White at SG; (2) first sub in is Gillon for White, Gillon at PG, Battle moves to the 2; then Battle and Gillon come out, and Frank (PG) and White (2G) go in. That's how I see the backcourt rotation. Frank gets a shot in the first half and in the second half if we get pressed. Otherwise the other 3 guys are going to see most of the minutes. Battle plays PG at least sometimes because that's what he was promised. Gillon is a PG, period. With the scoring prowess of Gillon and White, Frankie gets bumped until next year.

The forward situation will be interesting. Lydon and Roberson are the starters. Anybody who thinks otherwise hasn't been watching SU basketball for the past 30 years. Moyer is going to get time, probably in place of Roberson for this season, because Matthew has some work to do on his outside game. After that, again it gets interesting.

If Thompson is really good, he'll play some at F. I don't see him at C this year except for games where both Chukwu and Coleman get into foul trouble. I think that situationally, you could see White at F with Battle and Gillon, where we need the extra outside shooting, say if someone is playing a zone against us. I think if you are playing a big physical team that is killing us on the boards, I still think Roberson is our first choice at PF, unless he is having a terrible game, then you would see Thompson. But if Thompson isn't that quick off his feet and coasts through portions of games, as he sometimes did at the lower level, then Matt Moyer might steal some minutes, because the kid always plays hard and he plays nasty. He's a great competitor.

That's how I see the rotation, if we are fortunate enough to get Andrew White.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Maybe so, but we will be able to rebound in other areas this year. Outside of the center's, he's the least skilled player on the team.

I guess we could see a ton of Lydon at the 5 with Roberson at the 4, if you want to keep him in the game.

I see no circumstance that Lydon plays the 5 this year. We've got 3 guys ahead of him for that spot. Play him where he belongs, as a stretch 4 / Small Forward.

 

[orangefog]

I see no circumstance that Lydon plays the 5 this year. We've got 3 guys ahead of him for that spot. Play him where he belongs, as a stretch 4 / Small Forward.

I agree for the most part, however, I do think that if we are behind at the end of a game, we would see Lydon slide to the 5, Roberson at the 4, White at the 3, Battle at the 2 and Gillin at the point.

 

[IthacaMatt]

That's exactly how I see it, too.

Just like he was going to move Mali to the 2 this year, I don't really see us using White predominantly at the F position, because we still only have 3 guards, and Frank is simply not as good as White or Gillon. We have guys to cover the forward spot in abundance. Yes, White could play F, but we need him much more as a spot up shooting guard - Cipolla, etc. That kind of player.

 

[IthacaMatt]

I hope Howard doesn't end up being recruited over/ transferred over. I could see him going if we get the class we all want next year, even with all the departures. I think the addition if White would increase the chances of Battle staying a second year. If we got two 5 star guards, Howard could end up the fourth guard in his junior year.

I think next year (17-18), Frank will be an important guy and will be part of a 3 guard rotation with the 2 freshmen we wind up getting at PG and SG. Yes, this year he's getting bumped by 2 grad transfers (hopefully), but he didn't light it up last year and he got a fair chance. He can't be too disappointed, because he didn't play well offensively. Good passer, good vision, pretty good defender, but he needs a year to improve his shooting before we can really rely on him.

 

[bevosu]

Sorry if this is repeating what an astute poster has already posted. I haven't read the last 3 pages.

Roberson will get considerable minutes because he's a senior who has started many games and JB is his coach.

The JB way.

 

[Jack Hall]

Just like he was going to move Mali to the 2 this year, I don't really see us using White predominantly at the F position, because we still only have 3 guards, and Frank is simply not as good as White or Gillon. We have guys to cover the forward spot in abundance. Yes, White could play F, but we need him much more as a spot up shooting guard - Cipolla, etc. That kind of player.

You say Frank is not as good as White or Gillon. That may be. But what position would FH play? Its only PG imo, and pgs need to be playmakers, or at least its ideal. Now look at Howards, Gillons, etc assists per minutes last year. Howard has the better #s there. I am not convinced Gillon will be a better pg than Howard next year. He may very well be but...

 

[Jack Hall]

Sorry if this is repeating what an astute poster has already posted. I haven't read the last 3 pages.

Roberson will get considerable minutes because he's a senior who has started many games and JB is his coach.

The JB way.

The same JB who said "if i had anybody else..."?

But otherwise i agree with you, TR plays a lot next year. He is a critical piece when he is in what i have heard called "Beast Mode"

 

[LAOrange]

Wow. I just realized that I forgot Thompson when I looked at the lineups. This is a terrific team.
Gillon - Howard
White - Battle
Coleman - Chukwu
Lydon - Moyer
Robeson - Thompson

 

[bevosu]

The same JB who said "if i had anybody else..."?

JB says a lot of things in the heat of battle.

Roberson will get considerable minutes...unless he plays himself out of those minutes. I suspect he won't.

 

[normaliswear]

I agree for the most part, however, I do think that if we are behind at the end of a game, we would see Lydon slide to the 5, Roberson at the 4, White at the 3, Battle at the 2 and Gillin at the point.

That's the great thing we'd have if white comes here (knock on wood)... the ability to adapt to any situation. Need ball handlers who can attack the basket? Throw out Gillon, Battle, White, Roberson, and DC2. Behind and need 3s? Gillon, Howard, Battle, White, and Lydon. Ahead and want to smother the opposition shooting? Battle, White, Lydon, Roberson, Chukwu. Getting beat on the glass? Battle, White, Roberson, Thompson, DC2. Need free throw shooters to ice a game? Gillon, Battle, White, Moyer, Lydon. Etc etc

 

[Toga]

Exactly. He has already been "The Man" at Nebraska, and the NBA went "uh, so what?" So he needs to play on a bigger stage, on a successful team that is going to be in the news and in the tournament. That will get him the visibility he's looking for.

I agree with this but that doesn't say much for NBA scouting / selection process.

 

[Cusefan0307]

I see no circumstance that Lydon plays the 5 this year. We've got 3 guys ahead of him for that spot. Play him where he belongs, as a stretch 4 / Small Forward.

I would agree, but some people here think White gets the bulk of minutes at the 3, and I can't see JB sending our best forward to the bench for some of these other guys.

 

[pearl31]

well this has certainly become

 

[IthacaMatt]

I would agree, but some people here think White gets the bulk of minutes at the 3, and I can't see JB sending our best forward to the bench for some of these other guys.

It comes down to this - who is the better player? Frank at guard, or Moyer/Thompson at forward? If Frank is so much better than the 2 incoming freshmen forwards, then White will play forward and Frank will be the third guard. But with White having played the 2G at Nebraska, and our serious need for a 2G, and our reasonable depth at forward, I don't see JB keeping one of Lydon or Roberson on the bench vs. White, so that leaves White competing with Moyer and Thompson and Frank for who gets minutes. I see the opportunity at 2G, not at SF, although I do agree that in certain end-of-game situations where we need scoring, he may play White at forward along with either Lydon, or Roberson with Lydon at C, although I just don't see Lydon at Center this year unless we are desperate.

 

[Briancuse]

I would agree, but some people here think White gets the bulk of minutes at the 3, and I can't see JB sending our best forward to the bench for some of these other guys.

With all the talented forwards we have, I really don't see White playing the 3, unless we incur massive foul trouble.

 

[IthacaMatt]

You say Frank is not as good as White or Gillon. That may be. But what position would FH play? Its only PG imo, and pgs need to be playmakers, or at least its ideal. Now look at Howards, Gillons, etc assists per minutes last year. Howard has the better #s there. I am not convinced Gillon will be a better pg than Howard next year. He may very well be but...

Gillon plays with the ball in his hands. So does Battle. Both of them are way better scorers than Frankie, who I really do like. I just think that if we get White, both he and Gillon are more proven, they will be 5th year guys, and Battle is an elite talent.

 

[IthacaMatt]

I agree with this but that doesn't say much for NBA scouting / selection process.

There are only so many hours in the day for these guys to watch 350 Division 1 basketball games.