JB calling into Axe about recruiting now

[iommi]

I'm imagining our squad with MCW that couldn't score (our defense was great). We won and lost games in the 40's and 50's. That's what it will be if some of our forwards can't stretch the defense.

Last year I was confident Battle would be a better shooter than people thought. The guy I'm touting to be a better shooter than anticipated is Moyer. I've looked closely at his mechanics and his shot looks like it's been completely reworked. I'll say he will shoot somewhere in the neighborhood of 33% from deep.

 

[SoBeCuse]

I'm pretty sure that a majority of posters here said starting white at the 2 with both Roberson and Coleman playing would not work. Slide Battle in and bring Roberson off the bench from game one and I don't think our OOC is such a disaster. Yes guys getting in late played a part but the rotation in the early going was bad coaching.

Thorpe and the Slovakian are supposedly not getting to campus until Sept! Boeheim said this in the 'No Huddle' presser in Albany.

 

[OrangeDW]

I'm pretty sure that a majority of posters here said starting white at the 2 with both Roberson and Coleman playing would not work. Slide Battle in and bring Roberson off the bench from game one and I don't think our OOC is such a disaster. Yes guys getting in late played a part but the rotation in the early going was bad coaching.

Agreed. If we begin this season starting Howard at PG, Thompson at PF, and Chukwu at C...

 

[pearl31]

Thorpe and the Slovakian are supposedly not getting to campus until Sept! Boeheim said this in the 'No Huddle' presser in Albany.

yep and it's a big problem - look for mixing/matching, lack of cohesion for the first couple months of the season once again Oh Lord

 

[SoBeCuse]

yep and it's a big problem - look for mixing/matching, lack of cohesion for the first couple months of the season once again Oh Lord

Yep. Was disappointed to hear that.

 

[iommi]

Agreed. If we begin this season starting Howard at PG, Thompson at PF, and Chukwu at C...

If that lineup is out there for big minutes, we'd score 40 a game. Sadly I'm thinking Howard and Chukwu might start, based on what JB has been saying. I'm going to hide under my bed now, shivering in a cold sweat.

 

[Cuse House]

Last year I was confident Battle would be a better shooter than people thought. The guy I'm touting to be a better shooter than anticipated is Moyer. I've looked closely at his mechanics and his shot looks like it's been completely reworked. I'll say he will shoot somewhere in the neighborhood of 33% from deep.

That would be a welcomed surprise.

 

[GooseMutt]

I agree 100%. By far, this is the proximate cause of our precarious position and pecking order in the ACC. Unless next year truly exceeds expectations, we are looking at our 4th year in a row of being a middle of the pack, mediocre .500 ACC club. I hope we can finally get that ACC tourney W; I've have never believed anyone if they had told me when we joined, that we still would be bowling gutter balls in that regard.

Perhaps but when we do ascend to the top we will be kings

 

[007]

Last year I was confident Battle would be a better shooter than people thought. The guy I'm touting to be a better shooter than anticipated is Moyer. I've looked closely at his mechanics and his shot looks like it's been completely reworked. I'll say he will shoot somewhere in the neighborhood of 33% from deep.

As a team, SU shot 38% from 3 last year, 12th best nationally. White was 1 of only 6 Div 1 players to take more than 200 3s. We were a spot up shooting offense last year. That will look totally different this coming season.

Battle is a special player, TT is gifted on offense, Thorpe's offensive efficiency numbers on a terrible team were impressive 3 reasons why Geno Thorpe's scoring punch will help Syracuse replace White, Gillon - ACCSports.com I think (hope) Brissett will give us another dynamic scoring threat, and Moyer could be the X factor IF he can hit mid range and get to the rim.

The Achilles heel on offense next year will be more about the lack of an interior scoring threat rather than the lack of enough decent shooters/scorers, IMO. If PC plays a lot of minutes (don't think he will), we will be playing 4 on 5.

We will see lots of pick and roll half court sets (TT could be really good here) and iso dribble penetration. We will need to be a very good offensive rebounding team to compete in the ACC or make the tourney.

 

[iommi]

As a team, SU shot 38% from 3 last year, 12th best nationally. White was 1 of only 6 Div 1 players to take more than 200 3s. We were a spot up shooting offense last year. That will look totally different this coming season.

Battle is a special player, TT is gifted on offense, Thorpe's offensive efficiency numbers on a terrible team were impressive 3 reasons why Geno Thorpe's scoring punch will help Syracuse replace White, Gillon - ACCSports.com I think (hope) Brissett will give us another dynamic scoring threat, and Moyer could be the X factor IF he can hit mid range and get to the rim.

The Achilles heel on offense next year will be more about the lack of an interior scoring threat rather than the lack of enough decent shooters/scorers, IMO. If PC plays a lot of minutes (don't think he will), we will be playing 4 on 5.

We will see lots of pick and roll half court sets (TT could be really good here) and iso dribble penetration. We will need to be a very good offensive rebounding team to compete in the ACC or make the tourney.

Interesting analysis. I'm not sure you are right about our Achilles heel. We have only two proven shooters in Battle and Thorpe. I'm also terrified that JB seems to like PC enough to give him way more minutes than he should.

The roster is poorly conceived on paper. Way too many 4 types. A huge key is finding someone at the 3 who can take someone off the dribble and shoot. Obvious candidates are Brissett and Moyer (now that Moyer is in great shape and hopefully an improved ball handler). Who knows about Dr. Slov (MD)? He is a total X factor.

The iso dribble penetration could be important but do we have the guys to space the floor in order to make that work? Battle will be keyed on every game. Might be face-guarded by smart coaches.

This team is one giant question mark. Having a steady hand to guide the ship would help but Thorpe is a late arrival. That sucks. JB likes Frank the Crank. We shall see.

 

[cuseinseattle]

Last year I was confident Battle would be a better shooter than people thought. The guy I'm touting to be a better shooter than anticipated is Moyer. I've looked closely at his mechanics and his shot looks like it's been completely reworked. I'll say he will shoot somewhere in the neighborhood of 33% from deep.

That would be great.

 

[cuseinseattle]

Interesting analysis. I'm not sure you are right about our Achilles heel. We have only two proven shooters in Battle and Thorpe. I'm also terrified that JB seems to like PC enough to give him way more minutes than he should.

The roster is poorly conceived on paper. Way too many 4 types. A huge key is finding someone at the 3 who can take someone off the dribble and shoot. Obvious candidates are Brissett and Moyer (now that Moyer is in great shape and hopefully an improved ball handler). Who knows about Dr. Slov (MD)? He is a total X factor.

The iso dribble penetration could be important but do we have the guys to space the floor in order to make that work? Battle will be keyed on every game. Might be face-guarded by smart coaches.

This team is one giant question mark. Having a steady hand to guide the ship would help but Thorpe is a late arrival. That sucks. JB likes Frank the Crank. We shall see.

Frank the crank. I love that. I think I might have to use that.

 

[cuseinseattle]

I was unhappy that Dolezaj was getting here in August but now we know Thorpe will be late too and that's not good.

I wasn't aware of Thorpe coming late. How late?

 

[iommi]

I wasn't aware of Thorpe coming late. How late?

Thorpe and Dolezaj will get here in September, according to JAB.

 

[GooseMutt]

Interesting analysis. I'm not sure you are right about our Achilles heel. We have only two proven shooters in Battle and Thorpe. I'm also terrified that JB seems to like PC enough to give him way more minutes than he should.

The roster is poorly conceived on paper. Way too many 4 types. A huge key is finding someone at the 3 who can take someone off the dribble and shoot. Obvious candidates are Brissett and Moyer (now that Moyer is in great shape and hopefully an improved ball handler). Who knows about Dr. Slov (MD)? He is a total X factor.

The iso dribble penetration could be important but do we have the guys to space the floor in order to make that work? Battle will be keyed on every game. Might be face-guarded by smart coaches.

This team is one giant question mark. Having a steady hand to guide the ship would help but Thorpe is a late arrival. That sucks. JB likes Frank the Crank. We shall see.

Boeheim knows something about PC we don't. I going to trust his instincts

 

[iommi]

Boeheim knows something about PC we don't. I going to trust his instincts

Cooley liked PC too and was publicly bummed when PC transferred. Then again, maybe Cooley saw his potential and felt he could develop him at Providence. Did we develop him? Even before he hurt his eye, did you honestly see anything from Chukwu, other than his height? What the heck were we doing with him to get him ready to play in the year he was sitting out? Was he coordinated? Did he understand the back end of Trunk Monkey? Could he shoot a FT?

Now it's taken him a while to get cleared because of his surgery. Is he going to be any better? I do think JB must see something besides his height but what? Will he suddenly understand positioning? Will he suddenly have coordination? I'm intentionally asking a lot of questions to make my point.

I wanted so badly for PC to be a force in there on defense and serviceable on offense. Yes, he blocked a few shots against smurfs. Okay, what else? He really looked barely better than Cat Rescuer.

Bourama Sidibe. Where is the two thumbs up emoji?

 

[GooseMutt]

Cooley liked PC too and was publicly bummed when PC transferred. Then again, maybe Cooley saw his potential and felt he could develop him at Providence. Did W develop him? Even before he hurt his eye, did you honestly see anything from Chukwu, other than his height? What the heck were we doing with him to get him ready to play in the year he was sitting out? Was he coordinated? Did he understand the back end of Trunk Monkey? Could he shoot a FT?

Now it's taken him a while to get cleared because of his surgery. Is he going to be any better? I do think JB must see something besides his height but what? Will he suddenly understand positioning? Will he auddenly have coordination? I'm intentionally asking a lot of questions to make my point.

I wanted so badly for PC to be a force in there on defense and serviceable on offense. Yes, he blocked a few shots against smurfs. Okay, what else? He really looked barely better than Cat Rescuer.

Bourama Sidibe. Where is the two thumbs up emoji?

Your post is reasonable and right on. No I personally did not see anything that impressed me and I share your skepticism but there must be something there JB sees. Hate so say it but he sees something in Frank too which I am also skeptical about. Being on the outside looking in I feel I have to trust his instincts because this is his thing

 

[GooseMutt]

Your post is reasonable and right on. No I personally did not see anything that impressed me and I share your skepticism but there must be something there JB sees. Hate so say it but he sees something in Frank too which I am also skeptical about. Being on the outside looking in I feel I have to trust his instincts because this is his thing

Imagine if he's right though

 

[007]

Interesting analysis. I'm not sure you are right about our Achilles heel. We have only two proven shooters in Battle and Thorpe. I'm also terrified that JB seems to like PC enough to give him way more minutes than he should.

The roster is poorly conceived on paper. Way too many 4 types. A huge key is finding someone at the 3 who can take someone off the dribble and shoot. Obvious candidates are Brissett and Moyer (now that Moyer is in great shape and hopefully an improved ball handler). Who knows about Dr. Slov (MD)? He is a total X factor.

The iso dribble penetration could be important but do we have the guys to space the floor in order to make that work? Battle will be keyed on every game. Might be face-guarded by smart coaches.

This team is one giant question mark. Having a steady hand to guide the ship would help but Thorpe is a late arrival. That sucks. JB likes Frank the Crank. We shall see.

Believe me, I am the first to admit it's all amateurish, preseason guesswork, especially with all the unknowns this coming year. Even as a former coach, I can tell you that what you think you have coming in and what you end up with when they take the court as a team can be way, way off no matter how many 100s of times you watch them scrimmage. We lived that last year.

Battle and TT are high level ACC scorers. Good place to start as they will demand help side support which will help space the floor, but not completely. Any good D at this level can account for 2 scorers and still limit off ball action. The huge leap of faith in my analysis above is that Brissett will play the 3 and be a dynamic scorer. If Thorpe (or Frank??) can be effective running half court sets and shoot off the dribble, you have the potential for good offensive without the presence of knock down shooters.

The one obvious missing piece is the lack of an interior scoring threat or post presence. Because of that, the D will be able to cheat on all off screens, double on ball screens, collapse to the paint, and face guard Battle (that's what happened to White last year and TC the previous 2 years).

If you are correct about too many 4 types, and there is no post scoring, it will be a historically bad year by SU standards.

 

[iommi]

Another great post above, 007 ! I enjoy reading your thoughts. You can tell you've done some coaching.

I will say that our biggest hope for post scoring is Sidibe. Yes, he is raw offensively but he does have a face up jumper out to about 15 feet, baby hook, drop step and an up and under move. The drop step looked like a work-in-progress but he used it effectively against Deng Gak, who will be at Miami this year.

He reminds me a little of Baye, as I've said (and JB said a couple days ago) with his motor and his gait. He runs the floor well like Baye but with much better hands. His game down low reminds me a bit of Rick Jackson but not as polished. More like frosh or soph year Rick The Ruler. It's an old school post game with solid athleticism. He played a lot of soccer back in Bali before he took on basketball and it shows in his footwork. I've seen him finish lefty and righty.

Again, all of this sounds amazing. It may come off over the top but it's what I've seen. The negatives: he has very thin legs. His arms do have some muscularity but he needs to get a lot stronger, something his high school coach told me he will work hard at. Still, I expect him to struggle offensively at times because he's raw and lacks strength. Looking at our roster, considering TT is more of a stationary jump shooter, I am looking at Sidibe as our best hope out of our 3 center types to do damage around the basket. Maybe TT worked on his inside game. But I'm basing all of this on what I've seen prior to this year. Sidibe could be our do-over from Diagne, whose absence has been underestimated. I just hope he's hitting the weight room with vigor and doing a ton of leg presses.

I'm not expecting Sidibe to be hugely impactful offensively but with the skills I've described, could be somewhat impactful in year one.

 

[kcsu]

Believe me, I am the first to admit it's all amateurish, preseason guesswork, especially with all the unknowns this coming year. Even as a former coach, I can tell you that what you think you have coming in and what you end up with when they take the court as a team can be way, way off no matter how many 100s of times you watch them scrimmage. We lived that last year.

Battle and TT are high level ACC scorers. Good place to start as they will demand help side support which will help space the floor, but not completely. Any good D at this level can account for 2 scorers and still limit off ball action. The huge leap of faith in my analysis above is that Brissett will play the 3 and be a dynamic scorer. If Thorpe (or Frank??) can be effective running half court sets and shoot off the dribble, you have the potential for good offensive without the presence of knock down shooters.

The one obvious missing piece is the lack of an interior scoring threat or post presence. Because of that, the D will be able to cheat on all off screens, double on ball screens, and face guard Battle (that's what happened to White last year and TC the previous 2 years).

If you are correct about too many 4 types, and there is no post scoring, it will be a historically bad year by SU standards.

Nice post. I think Sid is gonna be a terrific player. Also dont sleep on Chubaka. Best pair of centers we have had in a long time

 

[iommi]

Nice post. I think Sid is gonna be a terrific player. Also dont sleep on Chubaka. Best pair of centers we have had in a long time

Outside of his height, what do you like about Chukwu's game?

 

[dasher]

Nice post. I think Sid is gonna be a terrific player. Also dont sleep on Chubaka. Best pair of centers we have had in a long time

Is 5 years a long time? And while I hope you are correct, neither has done a thing in a game for us.

 

[two3zone]

Nice post. I think Sid is gonna be a terrific player. Also dont sleep on Chubaka. Best pair of centers we have had in a long time

Sid & 72 > Melo & BMK ??

Come on....

 

[cuseinseattle]

I didn't listen to Boeheim on Axe but to be honest the fact he called in to talk about recruiting tells you everything you need to know about our situation.