Interesting tweet by Jeff Goodman SU may be interested in Antonio Barton

[jdubs30]

There have been a few transfer possibilities brought up here and this is the first one I think might be somewhat realistic.

I will say this, Boeheim is picky about bringing in transfers. I dont think he'd do it unless he thought Barton could compete for the starting job or that nobody else can handle back up point minutes.

Its risky because Barton would have to come in and learn the zone straight away, meaning he would play some pretty bad D to start and not have three years to make up for it the way Ennis and Patterson will.

Still Barton has all the qualities you think you'd need. Experience. The ability to hit threes. Tall enough to play in the zone. It seems like a possibility if Boeheim is interested.

It's hard to tell how many freshman struggle with the zone because they don't know it compared to because they are a year out of high school. Barton has played in college for 4 years, I'd have to think he'd adapt to the zone quicker than a normal freshman coming out of high school.

 

[HoustonCuse]

I don't see this as realistic at all. Why would he come to a place to be a backup guy or an insurance policy for a guy we fully intend on playing huge minutes? He could go to a host of other places and get big minutes, have a blast, be a BMOC for one last go around. Also, why would JB cast a vote of no confidence in his guards by doing this? He's got Ennis, Cooney, Gbinije, Patterson, and possibly BJ to play guard spots. Yes they are all inexperienced, but JB has committed to these guys and their development. That gets derailed by bringing in a one-year mercenary.

I would say the only reason JB would do this is if he knows we're going to have a post-season ban in 2015 because that is the year for us and we'll want this year to develop the backcourt that is going to get us to the promised land, not use all those minutes on a throwaway one-and-done guy, only to have the same problems (inexperience) in '14-'15 when our real shot will come.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

There have been a few transfer possibilities brought up here and this is the first one I think might be somewhat realistic.

I will say this, Boeheim is picky about bringing in transfers. I dont think he'd do it unless he thought Barton could compete for the starting job or that nobody else can handle back up point minutes.

Its risky because Barton would have to come in and learn the zone straight away, meaning he would play some pretty bad D to start and not have three years to make up for it the way Ennis and Patterson will.

Still Barton has all the qualities you think you'd need. Experience. The ability to hit threes. Tall enough to play in the zone. It seems like a possibility if Boeheim is interested.

I'm thinking this is a where-there's-smoke-there's-fire thing. We seem to be getting mentioned in the media with a lot of one year rentals. Must be a reason why.

 

[thebigeast44]

We're getting mentioned because we do not have a back up true point guard next year - simple as that IMHO- no other reasons needed.

 

[cusetown1]

We were interested in Barton at one point back in HS and cooled on him (might have been grades can't really remember). I would highly doubt we would bring him into the mix.

I believe that was Will Barton.

 

[Ward]

I don't see this as realistic at all. Why would he come to a place to be a backup guy or an insurance policy for a guy we fully intend on playing huge minutes? He could go to a host of other places and get big minutes, have a blast, be a BMOC for one last go around. Also, why would JB cast a vote of no confidence in his guards by doing this? He's got Ennis, Cooney, Gbinije, Patterson, and possibly BJ to play guard spots. Yes they are all inexperienced, but JB has committed to these guys and their development. That gets derailed by bringing in a one-year mercenary.

I would say the only reason JB would do this is if he knows we're going to have a post-season ban in 2015 because that is the year for us and we'll want this year to develop the backcourt that is going to get us to the promised land, not use all those minutes on a throwaway one-and-done guy, only to have the same problems (inexperience) in '14-'15 when our real shot will come.

I actually think the opposite. I don't think it would hinder the development of the young guards. I think it may actually help them long term because they can work on their point guard skills more naturally rather than be forced into a role they might not be ready for and have some struggles. Also, as some have mentioned what happens in the awful situation where Ennis gets hurt and misses a stretch of time? In February or January with no point guard in the heart of ACC play will we still be ok with passing on a potential 5th year senior with high level experience so that our younger guys could practice playing point guard? I don't really see the downside of bringing him in if he's ok with being a back up pg. He's tight with CJ too so if he does come here then we'll know CJ vouched for him and there should be an amicable agreement on things in place. Also, who knows maybe he can even mentor the freshman a little bit seeing as how he'll be so much older and experienced. We may not have many minutes to offer him as other schools, but Memphis hasn't had much if any tournament success so it's possible he'll be drawn to coming to a FF contender, playing in front of huge crowds in the ACC, and playing with one of his best friends growing up for a year, as opposed to getting more minutes on a mediocre program. Bottom line, if he's accepting of his role I think if we can add an experienced back up point guard who can shoot from the outside it's a great opportunity.

The second paragraph is quite a leap. The future will take care of itself. We have the potential to have a chance to make another serious deep run in the tournament next year, and IMHO win the whole thing, and in sports you need to seize the current opportunity. It's a dangerous game to sacrifice maximizing the current season success when a championship is attainable because you just never know what will happen in the future, as we've seen with AO and Fab.

 

[M2MPrinciples]

Boeheim said recently that Gbinije could handle the point for 5-8 minutes a game. That doesn't necessarily mean he's not looking to bring in a transfer who can back Ennis up, but I found it interesting.

 

[orangefan13]

I worry more about our passing and ball reversal without ennis more then our ball handling.
Gbinije, Patterson, and Fair all are the look to score types.
Gbinije is real fast in the open court like Dion or Paul Harris which should help some. As is Fair.

I wouldn't be surprised to see us go with a 3 guard lineup with Gbinije or BJ's ball handling next to Fair if Grant or Roberson don't have it in the open court against the press. If they aren't pressing I am not to worried about it as Ennis, Gbinije, Fair and Patterson can all take their man one on one from the perimeter. Cooney wasn't all that bad at it last year either.

 

[Jake]

Barton probably not happening.

 

[orangefan13]

Jon Severe 6'2 PG/SG mix just signed with Fordham a few days ago and turned down Pitt/Rutgers/West Virginia because he wanted to stay close to home in NY. Seemed like a solid combo guard to me.

 

[HoustonCuse]

I worry more about our passing and ball reversal without ennis more then our ball handling.
Gbinije, Patterson, and Fair all are the look to score types.
Gbinije is real fast in the open court like Dion or Paul Harris which should help some. As is Fair.

I wouldn't be surprised to see us go with a 3 guard lineup with Gbinije or BJ's ball handling next to Fair if Grant or Roberson don't have it in the open court against the press. If they aren't pressing I am not to worried about it as Ennis, Gbinije, Fair and Patterson can all take their man one on one from the perimeter. Cooney wasn't all that bad at it last year either.

Maybe you go with a pressing strategy with Patterson at the 1. His length and quickness would be tough on a team and also help us get points in transition while Ennis is out instead of relying completely on half court sets triggered by the PG.