A little perspective here

[LennX6]

What I don't get is how he was cleared weeks ago to play, and then all of a sudden he's suspended again -- without final grades coming out. How can that be?

Unless that's not really the case.

 

[SarasotaPaul]

I agree. SU hoops helped me and my family get through my daughter's cancer. Or at least push it out of our thoughts for a few minutes.

I went through that last year with my brother who passed on April 3rd. We watched every game and that was Dan's delight as well as mine and our brothers, friends and family. My thoughts and prayers for you and your daughter.

 

[N.Y. Orangeman]

I am with Jake on this one. I am far from calling for JB's head, but he is ultimately responsible for the program and the athletes who are part of it. This criticism isnt unfair.

Thoughts are with you Joyce.

 

[SarasotaPaul]

SarasotaPaul: You are right - a sex scandal that has not totally gone away, a drug scandal that has not totally been addressed, and a player being suspended twice within two months including on the eve of the NCAA tourney should present no reason to question blind loyalty to the program. And again - had that sentence been about any other program you'd wear Orange glasses to blast UConn, Georgetown and others.

No I wouldn't. I'd actually follow the reports to their conclusion. Perhaps you might do the same. Maybe a good pair of reading glasses so you can see something other than the headlines. Numbers 1 and 2 have lost the sting intended by the headlines with their inaccuracies and false accusations. Number 3 is the University putting its foot down when needed and to their own athletic detriment. But go ahead and you can blindly accept everything in the headlines and be embarrassed.

 

[RF2044]

I agree. SU hoops helped me and my family get through my daughter's cancer. Or at least push it out of our thoughts for a few minutes.

AccuRater--terribly, terribly sorry to hear about this. My family has been touched [extensively] by cancer--and your daughter is in my thoughts and prayers.

 

[arbitragegls]

Joyce, as usual an excellent post. It is times like this for the fandom and SU alumns to stand together. What sets this university apart is that Fab is not playing in a tournament/game that most of those on this board take very passionately...but he is not playing for the right reason. Other students who attend 'Cuse either make it through or not...some pay on their own dime; others like Fab get a free ride; and some like Fab find out that a free ride does not include academic dishonor either in poor grades and or cheating. Whichever the reason, Fab failed himself and the fans...but it is not life threatening and certainly not the end of our university. It is in fact, a demonstration of our strength to do what is right and to set a standard that all students at 'Cuse must meet.

 

[MSOrange]

Good post - perspective is definitely needed. I've had various health issues throughout my life. In 2010, I had a staph infection that got a little bit out of hand and ended up at the Mayo Clinic for 2 months. Wes Johnson, Andy Rautins and the boys definitely were some good medicine during those months. But I've noticed since I've gotten past that ordeal, I handle stuff a little differently. Do I still plan my schedule around games and get intense during the games? Sure. But I get over losses and stuff like this much quicker than I used to. And I get frustrated when I see guys blow opportunities that I would give anything to have had. Well that part still drives me crazy but such is life. Gotta move on with the guys that have handled their business

 

['72 Orange]

I agree that a little perspective is needed. Sports (especially SU teams) have been a great refuge for me from the crap of everyday life that we all deal with. When this year was shaping up to be something special, it was very easy to emotionally invest myself in this team and to become immersed into this wonderful world where the good guys always seemed to win and hard work was rewarded. When this safe haven was threatened by the cumulative impact of the Fine, Fab suspension v.1, & drug stories, I and many other fans quickly became depressed and angry. What had we done to deserve this? Now this latest episode was the "last straw"! All of us were quickly pushed to the breaking point and many have reacted as if a member of their family betrayed & embarrassed them after we showed them nothing but love. The initial reaction is understandable, but when we dwell in this misery, it is destructive and this is where perspective can help us cope.

My prayers go out to all of the posters who have friends and family battling cancer and facing other difficult problems.

 

[JackBauer44]

Post of the year. Thank you so much.

Lifting up you, your family, your friend, and friends family in prayers tonight. Really puts things in perspective.

 

[cto]

Good post - perspective is definitely needed. I've had various health issues throughout my life. In 2010, I had a staph infection that got a little bit out of hand and ended up at the Mayo Clinic for 2 months. Wes Johnson, Andy Rautins and the boys definitely were some good medicine during those months. But I've noticed since I've gotten past that ordeal, I handle stuff a little differently. Do I still plan my schedule around games and get intense during the games? Sure. But I get over losses and stuff like this much quicker than I used to. And I get frustrated when I see guys blow opportunities that I would give anything to have had. Well that part still drives me crazy but such is life. Gotta move on with the guys that have handled their business

I had an experience very similar to yours, and like you I subsequently "handle stuff a little differently." I am not wishing a major staph infection or a major heart attack on anyone, but it is a life-changing event. I am still very happy when SU wins, but, like you, I "get over losses and stuff" much more quickly than I previously did. It has not been a conscious decision on my part. It's just sort of happened.

 

[kcsu]

Joyce, we have met and you most likely know my father who wishes to remain silent on this board. I lost my wife to cancer when she was very young and my girls were little so i know to what you speak. As to Fab i wish him well. I dont know him he seems like a nice kid who has been pampered his whole life. The fact that he decided to take advantage of Syracuse is nothing new and doesnt come as a surprise to me. I have known since last year that this woud be his last on the hill and have posted as such multiple times. It is too bad that his selfishness will hurt his teamates this year but so be it. Time to support the team. Something tells me we are going to be very proud of this group when it is all said and done. Nice post thank you for sharing.

 

[KaiserUEO]

without Jim Boeheim in the 80s, hoop at the Dome fails.

hoop goes back to manley.

SU is a joke program.

without Jim Boeheim in the 2010s...hoop will fail at the Dome.

yep, when hes gone, with or without Hop (who should be canned too if you all want JB gone), hoop will suffer and we long for the days of 20 wins and never leaving NYS.

Oh Lord

 

[SWC75]

Sorry to hear about your friend. The world of sports is like the canary they put in the coal mines- when it couldn't breathe anymore, you knew you were in serious trouble. As long as you hear the canary chirping, the important things are in good shape.

I think some of the posters who love to complain after a loss are finally getting their chance to vent at JB. it's clear that if SU did the suspending, not the NCAA, it's just a case of the University trying to apply standards and the player not lviing up to them.

My only quibble would be that the posters on this board were close to unanimous in saying that he could use another year here. They just didn't feel that that's what he wanted.

 

[007]

...
6) Get a grip, folks. Melo being suspended is not terminal cancer. It is not a homeless family with no money to feed their children. If you want to obsess about something important, volunteer at a soup kitchen. Or tutor inner-city kids so they will take academics seriously. But don't call for the head of the man who has done more for Syracuse University (and the entire Syracuse community) than anyone else in the school's history.

Perspective: I've noticed that anybody driving slower than me is an idiot, and anyone going faster is a moron. It's not what you're looking at that matters, it's what you see.

Thanks for the post. Having said that, I am still pretty sure that JB owes me money...

 

[kcsu]

On second thought Fab is a selfish SOB who has only thought of himself the whole time on the Hill Im so glad this kid is gone he reminds me of a petulant child gone bad. him

 

[DCCuse]

1) With very few exceptions, every high major D-1 school has a roster full of kids who are there to play basketball...rather than to go to class. Let's accept that. They have been idolized and catered to since they were in 7th grade....for their basketball skills.

2) Syracuse does as much as any school to try to make these kids take academics seriously. Team managers make sure they attend class. There are mandatory study halls throughout the semester. Tutors make sure they do their homework. However, none of that means anything if a kid decides to tune out. Totally coincidentally, I had dinner tonight with a current SU student who sits next to a prominent SU player in a class this semester. He says the player spends the entire class either sleeping or texting on his iPhone. This shows you can get a person to attend class... but not to pay attention to anything that is said in class.

3) Melo several months ago decided he was going to declare for the NBA at the end of this semester -- in part because he listens to people like those on this message board ... who have been touting him as going to the NBA this year. As a result, he totally tuned out on anything academic at SU. He was just marking time. In short, he didn't give a shxt. This, I remind you, is a kid who was strenuously recruited by a ton of schools three years ago -- all of whom wanted desperately to have him.

4) It is no secret here that I am friends with the entire Boeheim family. I have no friendships I value more. That being said, some of the stuff I have read here tonight ... directed at Jim... literally make me sick. A week ago, people here were touting Jim for national coach of the year. Tonight, some of the same people are calling for him to be fired. Which is it, folks? You have changed your mind 180 degrees because some delusional 20-year-old kid decided he didnt have to do his schoolwork any more because he's gonna get an NBA check next year????

5) No one here has been a bigger SU basketball fan than I have .... or for LONGER than I have. But guess what? It is a frigging game played by kids in their teens or barely out of their teens. It is not my friend Ray Matthieu, a genuine saint, who went into terminal hospice care today because he is about to die from late-stage Melanoma.

6) Get a grip, folks. Melo being suspended is not terminal cancer. It is not a homeless family with no money to feed their children. If you want to obsess about something important, volunteer at a soup kitchen. Or tutor inner-city kids so they will take academics seriously. But don't call for the head of the man who has done more for Syracuse University (and the entire Syracuse community) than anyone else in the school's history.

Great post and hope everyone on here reads this and takes it to heart. I heard the news today and also was very disappointed given the expectations for the team. That being said I also got news from my wife today that her uncle passed away unexpectedly down in Florida. I feel horrible for my father-in-law who lost his brother and his family who lost a great man. It makes me think twice about the importance I place on my passion of SU sports and the importance of the eligibility of one player on said team. I will support this team 100% and wish nothing but the best for them in the coming weeks.

CTO, I definitely pray for your friend and his family as they face a much more difficult situation than those on here who worry about the effect on SU's hoop team about the mistakes of Fab Melo.

 

[Cadillac]

Thank God this thread exists.

Everywhere I go someone is whining - excuse me - "venting," resurfacing after months of being MIA to grind an axe, wishing that Fab Melo would die, or trying too hard to troll the local yokels.

Finally, a safe place

 

[zhanjuzi]

This is greatly appreciated .. thanks!!

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Maybe I'm just confused here, but knowing that someone is entering a hospice in no way makes me feel better about Fab's suspension.

Or better about anything really.

 

[alibrat66]

Joyce, my thoughts are with your friend; and with your sister, SUBobby.

Sports are great, sort of like the Roman circus that distracts one from what is really going on around them; life, however, is a much bigger issue.

 

[Moontan]

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I agree with all of these points.

My thoughts are with you and your friend. I hope the best for your friend.

The language directed at HCJAB & Fab around these parts is just way out of line.

Am I disappointed? You bet.

Did Fab let people down? Yup.

Did Fab intentionally make things difficult for the team and himself? I doubt it. I suspect that he did the minimum of what he thought he had to do to get by. He miscalculated.

Did he do enough? Clearly, the answer is "No".

Let's go, Orange!

 

[Cuse_MN]

The anguish sports fans face over wins and losses can't be compared to life and death issues, people struggling to feed their families, etc. I highly doubt there are many who think otherwise.

Life issues are and always will be more important than wins, which is why I disagree with your point about being unable to get pampered athletes to live up to the standards of a program. Fab was arrested for allegedly getting physical with a woman, which happened multiple times according to her. After that incident, he should have been put on notice that there was zero tolerance for anything that didn't fit JB's standards. If it was so well know by the coach and insiders that he had checked out, wasn't attending class and generally didn't give a shiit, send him a message and suspend him or kick him off the team. Not the school, the coach. Coaches can and do set standards of conduct higher than the school they coach for. I don't know what happened with the first episode of ineligibility, but it was a perfect opportunity to show to all current and future players than wins and losses take a backseat to life standards. Say goodbye then and send a message. Utah kicked its senior, leading scorer off the team this year for repeatedly being late to practice and sleeping in class. Some coaches can and do deal with the problems you lay out.

I think the Fine issue and strong start probably made it more difficult for JB to make a statement by kicking a prominent player off the team. As fans, we all would have hated to have seen it happen, but I would question how JB or any coach could play the kid so much given he was apparently openly mocking the program standards. Not only does that not teach a life lesson to a kid who needs it, but it sends a message to all the kids on the team that wins are more important than standards of conduct.

We can debate what is considered high major D-1, but its a disservice to a lot of kids to say the entire roster of all those programs are full of kids that don't care about academics. Certainly less than 5% of the high major D-1 rosters will have any chance at going pro. Only eight teams in this years NCAA lie below the current APR standard and I would consider UCONN the only high D-1 program in the mix. Based on the future 930 APR standard, 13 teams in this years tourney would be ineligible for postseason participation. There are just two I would consider high major D-1 based on recent past... UCONN and Syracuse. Argue with the methodology all you want, its applied consistently across all schools. Can't imagine knowingly letting Fab or others mock the program standards this year is going to help our APR going forward.

http://www.tidesport.org/Grad Rates/2012 Men's Basketball Tournament Teams Study.pdf

 

[bnoro]

On second thought Fab is a selfish SOB who has only thought of himself the whole time on the Hill Im so glad this kid is gone he reminds me of a petulant child gone bad. him

Glad you took Joyce's post about perspective to heart.

 

[SUFan44]

Honestly, I do appreciate everything that Joyce has to say. It's a tough position to be in. But the biggest issue in this whole thing is where is the institutional control? There is no doubt in my mind that Fab Melo was an "academic risk" at the beginning of the second semester this year. And probably sooner (first semester this year). The basketball team is NOT like the football team -- there are maybe 15 guys on the team (maybe 18, including walk-ons). There is no DOUBT in my mind that the staff KNEW that Fab was an academic "risk". How does the entire staff not a) monitor his attendance at classes, b) understand that if he has issues, he needs a tutor or something greater and c) allow this type of situation to manifest itself during the most important time of the season?

I have given everyone on staff the benefit of the doubt -- with the Bernie Fine allegations, with the drug allegations, etc. But to be fair, it is absolutely UNEXCEPTABLE to allow a kid to be ineligible second semester. It is damn near impossible.

Unless, it isn't an academic issue (like Syracuse's PR department is saying).

There is more truth in the unknown. This is my personal opinion, but I truly believe that Fab failed a drug test. As many on this board have said. And that, if true, is letting your team down in the worst way possible.

I honestly believe that we the team has enough talent to do some damage in the tournament, even without Fab. Rakeem is adequate defensively and if he knows his role, he is a better defensive rebounder than Fab is. But to put his team in a position to be without a main cog of the team is extremely selfish and something that I am not sure will ever be forgiven.

 

[Rossco123]

Thank you Joyce.