If you were Battle’s advisor

[MikeSU02]

In my mind unless he gets the feedback that he's not a contender, he stays in. Just think his metrics will be pretty good and he's already had a serious injury in high school that will motivate a departure.

This ^^

Barring terrible feedback, I think he goes and should go.

He's got the tools to be a solid rotational player in the NBA and potential starter.

There are only so many NBA jobs that open up each year and with 2nd round picks being valued higher than ever, even if he's an early to mid second rounder, he should go.

 

[IthacaMatt]

what would you say? Obviously a trip without an agent to the combine is automatic. But if they suggest he may go late first round or early second should he? What is his 2019 draft potential? Is sharing the limelight with Oshae and Darius too threatening? Our chances for a national championship with him is very feasible but not guaranteed. Would we possibly have 3 lottery picks in one draft? Makes me dizzy

He almost certainly will be higher rated next year. He probably still will not make the first round, even with our success so far in the tournament. If he's not first round, IMO, he's making a mistake.

 

[HOFCeluck]

I'm not his advisor, but I'd tell him to go to the combine and hear directly from NBA scouts to find out what the flaws to his game are so that he can put himself in prime position to get drafted.

I think he needs another year and I'm a firm believer in that regardless of where you play and your year in school, the NBA will find you. Mikal Bridges is a junior and will go in the lottery. He's just the latest player to defy the thought process of you having to leave as a freshman to maximize your potential.

GMs aren't waiting for you to develop. They'll toss you in the G-League and if you can't make that leap, they'll cut their losses. Do what you need to in order to earn that second contract which shows you have some staying power. If that means coming back another year to further refine your skill set, so be it.

For every Mikal Bridges there’s a Ivan Rabb. Or Marcus Smart. Or Chris Thomas. Or Terrence Morris. Or (soon to be) Miles Bridges.

Syracuse fans romanticize the college experience and playing in the Dome and act like relegation to the G League is a fate worse than death. I don’t think draft prospects see it that way.

 

[PhatOrange]

Battle is our best player. ( although Brissett has more upside)

If Battle is on the team he will play and star.

Washington?

You can’t be serious.

Washington is a true PG and handled himself well in his brief stints. If given time to learn/grow he can be every bit as good as any PG we trot out there. Will run offense, get everyone involved, distribute and score 8 -10ppg. I'm talking junior/senior year. BUT nowhere was I saying that Washington will replace Battle. They don't even play the same position.

I'm not really looking forward to a season of Battle one on ones' next year while everyone else stands around.

 

[HOFCeluck]

This ^^

Barring terrible feedback, I think he goes and should go.

He's got the tools to be a solid rotational player in the NBA and potential starter.

There are only so many NBA jobs that open up each year and with 2nd round picks being valued higher than ever, even if he's an early to mid second rounder, he should go.

Yeah the game has changed even in the last couple years to make it more favorable for marginal players to declare. Larger rosters, two way contracts, teams like the Raptors treating their G league affiliates as actual developmental systems.

 

[orangepassion]

You could argue his shooting % will go up with a better supporting cast

 

[OrangeDW]

Well as a Syracuse grad i think we underrate the experience FOR NORMAL STUDENTS. It was awesome. These hoop players are in a South Campus bubble. They don't live normal lives like students who go from Day Hall to Booth to a frat/sorority to Castle Court. They are working for their scholarship every day.

i don't begrudge a kid who isn't interested in learning about history wanting to go to the NBA to learn the business of basketball. Some kids want to be well rounded (Duncan) and are better for it. At the end of the day, they need to know what they're giving up and if it's important and what they are getting (guaranteed deal, potentially G League, better training, etc).

The way so many former Syracuse players talk about their time at SU and come to games shows how highly they rate their experience at SU.

Very few guys around the world really make it in the NBA. For many basketball players, this is as good as it gets from the b-ball experience standpoint.

And even for the ones who do make the NBA...is Derrick Coleman going back to Nets games and tweeting about the NBA all the time? Seems to be all SU with him and many others.

 

[Bayside44]

For every Mikal Bridges there’s a Ivan Rabb. Or Marcus Smart. Or Chris Thomas. Or Terrence Morris. Or (soon to be) Miles Bridges.

Syracuse fans romanticize the college experience and playing in the Dome and act like relegation to the G League is a fate worse than death. I don’t think draft prospects see it that way.

Marcus Smart signed a 14 million dollar contract, was drafted 6th. Think Malachi would like that?

 

[OrangeDW]

Washington is a true PG and handled himself well in his brief stints. If given time to learn/grow he can be every bit as good as any PG we trot out there. I'm talking junior/senior year. BUT nowhere was I saying that Washington will replace Battle. They don't even play the same position.

I'm not really looking forward to a season of Battle one on ones' next year while everyone else stands around.

I don’t think we’ll get Battle one on ones while everyone else stands around, save for very specific circumstances and possessions.

Battle can fit nicely into an offense on a more talented offensive team IMO - he did it as a freshman.

If he does go, I think we see a 3 guard rotation of Howard, Hughes, and Carey. Washington and Boeheim - possible redshirts, but I doubt both of them do it. We’ll need at least one to provide that 4th guard depth that we’ve been missing.

 

[HOFCeluck]

Marcus Smart signed a 14 million dollar contract, was drafted 6th. Think Malachi would like that?

And yet Smart hurt his draft stock by staying. He was a projected top five pick in 2013. Your Malachi analogy falls a little short.

 

[Cusefan0307]

Miles Bridges is the 11th rated prospect overall. He looked like trash against us, but he will be a lottery pick.

I can't believe Jaren Jackson is rated higher than both Bagley and Carter by ESPN. That kid looked awful as well on Sunday.

 

[GooseMutt]

You could argue his shooting % will go up with a better supporting cast

Yes more open shots for sure

 

[Alsacs]

Jim Boeheim knows Battle is gone.
He has pumped up his stock.
He likes the kid and knows he is gone most likely.

Battle should go unless he can get his degree and he values that as getting paid to play pro basketball is always better than playing for free.

Kids don’t owe us anymore time than they decide they want.

 

[Arangeman]

That might be true. I think I probably do to an extent.

On the flip side, I think we as stable, successful, or at least well-adjusted professionals tend to overrate the workforce experience. The reality of working for a living, especially for a 21-year-old kid with virtually no work background and a limited support system in a new city, can be pretty bleak. It's not just as simple as "get drafted, watch the paychecks roll in, and the quality of life is tremendous." Some (not you) seem to make that assumption.

He's not leaving early to work in a cubicle at Deloitte. He has a very limited window to rake in 6 figures a year for playing ball. Maybe 7.

Battle is a smart kid with a very solid family foundation. He already drives a Range Rover. I imagine he has had big dreams he's been chasing since he could dribble. I am constantly wrong but I'd be shocked if he came back.

 

[HOFCeluck]

He already drives a Range Rover.

NOTHING TO SEE HERE NCAAA

 

[STEVEHOLT]

For every Mikal Bridges there’s a Ivan Rabb. Or Marcus Smart. Or Chris Thomas. Or Terrence Morris. Or (soon to be) Miles Bridges.

Syracuse fans romanticize the college experience and playing in the Dome and act like relegation to the G League is a fate worse than death. I don’t think draft prospects see it that way.

Marcus Smart? One of these things is not like the other

 

[HOFCeluck]

Marcus Smart? One of these things is not like the other

Not really.

 

[STEVEHOLT]

I don’t think we’ll get Battle one on ones while everyone else stands around, save for very specific circumstances and possessions.

Battle can fit nicely into an offense on a more talented offensive team IMO - he did it as a freshman.

If he does go, I think we see a 3 guard rotation of Howard, Hughes, and Carey. Washington and Boeheim - possible redshirts, but I doubt both of them do it. We’ll need at least one to provide that 4th guard depth that we’ve been missing.

I think Howard Hughes might be too old / dead to run the point and Carey Washington is ineligible to play on the men's team.

 

[Forloveoforange]

And yet Smart hurt his draft stock by staying. He was a projected top five pick in 2013. Your Malachi analogy falls a little short.

But what about being ready mentally. Even if your draft stock goes down, if you come into it with a stronger mind, and more ready to play in a different league, almost a different sport. Maybe it is better to be ready to seize the moment, so there isn't as much shock to the mind. If you're not ready to handle the pressure, then its better to wait. Have faith in your own mental development. We might be over-emphasizing one's inflated appeal. It will eventually show, so go into it with your best mental make-up. Stay a while.

 

[Arangeman]

Well as a Syracuse grad i think we underrate the experience FOR NORMAL STUDENTS. It was awesome. These hoop players are in a South Campus bubble. They don't live normal lives like students who go from Day Hall to Booth to a frat/sorority to Castle Court.

Trust me, I know. South Campus was a gulag

 

[upperdeck]

if you were battles advisor, seek the money.. if you were an NBA scout, pass.

 

[OttoMets]

...
Battle is a smart kid with a very solid family foundation. He already drives a Range Rover. ...

Haha, not to my point, but those sentences are structured as if one supports the other, when instead it seems to weaken it.

Anyway, I've read a few of the articles about these kids' early-career lives and I've spoken to a small handful of guys after they've left college. There are people who thrive, but I'm guessing they're in the minority - the Greg Oden stories seem to be common. It's a difficult transition from a social, community-centric atmosphere to one that's a lot more lonely and (obviously) professional.

 

[HOFCeluck]

But what about being ready mentally. Even if your draft stock goes down, if you come into it with a stronger mind, and more ready to play in a different league, almost a different sport. Maybe it is better to be ready to seize the moment, so there isn't as much shock to the mind. If you're not ready to handle the pressure, then its better to wait. Have faith in your own mental development. We might be over-emphasizing one's inflated appeal. It will eventually show, so go into it with your best mental make-up. Stay a while.

Yes his extra year at Oklahoma State certainly made him “mentally ready”...as evidenced by his three game suspension for getting into an altercation with a fan in February 2014.

 

[Townie72]

Washington is a true PG and handled himself well in his brief stints. If given time to learn/grow he can be every bit as good as any PG we trot out there. Will run offense, get everyone involved, distribute and score 8 -10ppg. I'm talking junior/senior year. BUT nowhere was I saying that Washington will replace Battle. They don't even play the same position.

I'm not really looking forward to a season of Battle one on ones' next year while everyone else stands around.

The little I have seen of Washington doesn’t fill me with any confidence. I’m not into projecting magical future improvements for players.

Because we are so offensively challenged, Battle has to do and keep doing what he does. He has to drive to the basket. He can’t throw the ball into the Bigs because they can’t catch it, or they’d miss the shot or get stripped.

If the rest of the team improves, he won’t have to go one on one.

 

[cuse10]

For every Mikal Bridges there’s a Ivan Rabb. Or Marcus Smart. Or Chris Thomas. Or Terrence Morris. Or (soon to be) Miles Bridges.

Syracuse fans romanticize the college experience and playing in the Dome and act like relegation to the G League is a fate worse than death. I don’t think draft prospects see it that way.

Marcus Smart was never that good. He is who he was at Oklahoma State. He just dominated against smaller and less skilled players. I can't explain why Miles Bridges came back. He's still a lottery pick and his game is virtually the same. Probably got a big manila envelope from a booster.

Secondly, I'm not romanticizing anything. The G League is the NBA purgatory. It isn't viewed as a viable minor league. Its just somewhere to stash players who aren't ready to contribute and taking up roster space. For every Andrew White, there's a CJ Fair or a Michael Gbinjie.