My 2016 SU Basketball Preview: The Team

[SWC75]

On the surface, it’s a strange year to have such grand ambitions. We lost 13 games. We lost our top three scorers –fifth year seniors Michael Gbinije and Trevor Cooney and freshman Malachi Richardson who broke out of an extended slump at just the right moment vs. Virginia and caught the eye of the NBA. Richardson looked as if he could become a big star on the college level but he wasn’t one yet and SU fans groaned when he took the NBA bait. We also lost little used back-up center Chinsoso Obohkoh and disappointing point guard Kaleb Joseph, who had started as a freshmen, both of whom transferred out. That was 5 of our 9 scholarship players.

That left us with:
DaJuan Coleman, a former McDonald’s All-American whose college career had been torpedoed by multiple knee surgeries
Tyler Roberson, a ferocious rebounder with few other skills whose ferociousness turned on and off like a light, such that assistant coach Mike Hopkins, (who will take over for JB when he leaves), called him “Turned on Robie” or “Turned off Robie”, depending on how he played in the last game.
Tyler Lydon, who had a promising freshman year but was not yet the primary focus of the defense, as he will be this year.
And Franklin Howard, a good passer who can’t shoot.

That’s the ‘right’ team?

A rule Boeheim actually doesn’t much like came to the rescue. A few years ago the NCAA declared that a player who had graduated from his current school but who had redshirted and still had a year of eligibility left could transfer to another school and play immediately if that other school had a course of graduate study not available at his current school. Predictably, schools developed classes in vague areas that simply sounded different from anything at other schools, (or, at least, had a different title). When quarterback Drew Allen transferred from Oklahoma to Syracuse, he was asked what he was majoring in and he couldn’t even answer the question. He pulled a card out of his pocket, dropped, picked it up and read it off. I forgot what they called it but he said it helped with “leadership” skills. Basically, the rule allowed fifth year seniors to become free agents and shop their services around. JB, (who doesn’t like change much anyway), took a dim view of it publically but realized that everybody else was going to take advantage of the rule and he needed to do so in a big way to remain competitive. He needed players and he got two good ones, lightening quick guard John Gillon, (only the one eye in his name, although there are two in his head, fortunately), from Colorado State and versatile swing man Andrew White from Nebraska, who can really rip the cords.

He already had a bird in the hand with Paschal Chukwu, the tallest player in Syracuse history at 7-2, who had transferred in after one year at Providence. The freshman recruiting class consisted of Tyus Battle, who just missed being a McDonald’s All-American and who can play either guard positon, (he wants to play the point because he figures that’s what he’d be in the NBA,) and forwards Taurean Thompson and Matthew Moyers. That gets us up to ten scholarship players, meaning we can go 5 on 5 in practice with no walk-ons, which we could not do last year. It will be probably the tallest team we’ve ever had, which really helps the zone. It will also be an offensively versatile team and, potentially, our first truly deep team since the 2012 steamroller. The biggest question but maybe the best thing is how the individual talents seem to fit together. The most interesting thing will be to see how Boeheim, the Hall of Famer, will use those talents.

 

[SWC75]

CENTERS

DaJuan Coleman, 6-9 258, senior

Five years ago there were two big local stories on the sports page: Breanna Stewart and DaJuan Coleman.”Stewie” was considered the #1 female basketball prospect coming out of high school nationally and DaJuan was one of the top male centers in the country. There were pictures of them posing together.

Breanna chose to go to Connecticut and won four national championships and three Player of the Year awards there. DaJuan has spent that time mostly rehabbing his aching knees.

From my pre-season preview last year:
“He ripped up his left knee twice in two seasons and wound up going through something called OATS surgery. From SB Nation: That procedure addresses cartilage damage by scooping out an area of healthy bone and cartilage from a non-weight bearing part of the former McDonald All-American's leg and inserted it into a small hole of cartilage damage in his knee.” (I didn’t know “scooping out” is a medical term.) Coleman went on a “juice” diet to reduce his weight from 282 to 258 pounds and take the pressure off his knee. So he’s spent most of the least two years in rehab, which takes a particular sort of determination.”

Last year we held our breath as he tried to play an entire season without re-injuring his knee and he made it. He managed to play in all 37 games and averaged 17.5 minutes per game. Here are his averages for the season, adjusted to 40 minutes so we can see what it might be if he played an entire game:
17.5M 11.2P 10.7R 0.9A 1.6S 2.0B = 26.4+ 3.5MFG 1.5MFT 2.5TO 6.3PF = 13.8- = 12.6NP 6.2OE 6.4FG

(M= minutes per game; P = points; R= rebounds; A = assists; S = steals; B = blocks; MFG = missed field goals; MFT = missed free throws; TO = turnovers; PF = personal fouls, all per 40 minutes. + = P plus R, A, S and B. - = MFG plus MFT, TO and PF. NP, “Net Points” = + minus -; OE, “Offensive Efficiency” = P –MFG and MFT; FG, “Floor Game” = NP – OE). I guy who scored 11 points, had 11 rebounds, an assist, 2 steals and two blocks would be considered to have a pretty good game.

He can score, although, like a lot of big men, he’s found that the moved that worked in high school don’t work as well in college. He can’t bull his way past everyone and he’s not taller than the guys guarding him, (I think he’s really 6-8, not 6-9). He has a tendency to hold the ball too low, which gives everybody a shot at it. But he can catch in the blocks and turn around and score inside and there’s that many guys who can do that in college ball any more. He’s a good rebounder and not a bad passer. In high school he was famous for his long outlet passes, although we haven’t seen much of that on this level. His big problem is the fouls: they only allow 5 of them and DaJuan commits 6.3 per 40 minutes. Then there’s his limited mobility: when he’s in the game, we are pretty much stuck in a half-court offense because he can’t get up and down the court.

He did show signs of improvement as the season wore on last year. He had an 8 point 8 rebound game vs. Pitt and followed that up with 11-11 against the same team, along with 2 blocks and 2 steals. The Panthers are typically the most physical team we play. He played 33 minutes in the latter game and 35 against NC State, scoring 7 points with 7 rebounds. I recall that Rakeem Christimas was another Mickey Dee who was disappointing for three years but started to have some big games late in his junior year and then played like an All-American his senior year. Rak didn’t have DaJuan’s knees but I have hopes that DC II, as he’s sometimes called, (no he’s not related to Derrick Coleman), can become a consistent contributor this season.

Some views of Coleman in action last year along with his comments:


Paschal Chukwu, 7-2 226, sophomore

I saw Chukwu last season standing next to Chinoso Obokoh, who was listed at 6-9. It seemed to me that the top of Obokoh’s head came up to about Chukwu’s chin. 7-2 is 5 inches taller than 6-9 so my perception wasn’t too far off. His arm span is to scale. He’s obviously not bulky but he didn’t really look skinny, either. I’ve only seen one film clip of his play from the one year he spent at Providence before transferring to SU. He looked athletic and quick. He blocked a shot, ran the length of the court and violently dunked in a follow shot. He looked like a great fish leaping out of the sea. Visions of such a player operating in the middle of Boeheim’s zone danced in my head. I recalled that we’d gone 30-1 with Fab Melo in the line-up in 2012 and I wondered if maybe we could have that type of team again with Chukwu.

I posted that sentiment to the Syracusefan.com board and one poster assured me that Chukwu was no Fab Melo and I should forget about it. Melo did have a different physique at 7-0 255. He was a stronger man but perhaps not as quick or athletic, He certainly wasn’t his first year when JB was always complaining about his lack of conditioning. Let’s look at Melo’s first year numbers, (again per 40 minutes) from 2010-11:
9.9M 9.4P 7.8R 1.0A 1.2S 3.1B = 22.5+, 2.7MFG 2.0MFT 3.1TO 7.3PF = 15.1- = 7.4NP 4.7OE 2.7FG
He could score a bit, wasn’t that much of a rebounder for his size but made some steals and could block shots. He was terrible at the foul line, (9/25), had too many turnovers and far too many fouls to even stay in the game. Boeheim and Bernie Fine worked on his conditioning and his game, (too bad they didn’t work on his academics, too) . Here are Fab’s numbers in his second year:
25.4M 12.3P 9.2R, 1.1A 0.8S 4.6B = 28.0+, 3.9MFG 1.2MFT 2.3TO 4.5PF = 11.9- = 16.1NP 7.2OE 8.9FG
He was more of an offensive threat and a better rebounder. He went from a good shot blocker to a great one. The charging fouls he drew aren’t in these numbers but they and the blocks made a big difference. He missed a few more shots from the field but became an acceptable free throw shooter for a big man, (38 for 60: 63%), reduced his turnovers and reduced his fouls to a level that allowed him to stay in the game for 25 minutes instead of 10.

Here are Chukwu’s numbers in his one year at Providence:
9.9M 10.7P 9.9R 0.6A 1.1S 2.7B = 25.0+, 2.0MFG 1.9MFT 2.3TO 7.5PF = 13.7- = 11.0NP 6.8OE 4.2FG
That’s the exact same number of minutes per game that Melo had as a freshman for the exact same reason: he fouled too much to stay in games. He was a somewhat better scorer and a better rebounder than the freshman Melo. He was similar in his other positive stats. He was also already a minimally adequate foul shooter, (24/40, exactly 60%) and he had fewer turnovers. he was clearly better in net points, offensive efficiency and floor game. Fine is gone but Boeheim and Hopkins have had a whole year between his freshman and sophomore years to work with him. That doesn’t mean he will turn into the 2012 Melo. But I think it means that he could and if he does, this could be a heck of a season.

Chukwu is a native of Nigeria and hasn’t playing the game very long, probably less than Melo did in his native country of Brazil. Chukwu had been playing the game for only 9 months when he arrived in this country in 2010. Here is an excellent article from Syracuse.com on Chukwu’s development as of last February: Updating Paschal Chukwu: Syracuse center tackles learning curve, 'is progressing great'

He’s very cerebral and is fascinated by the zone, which he says goes against a player’s normal tendencies. He still had a lot to learn at that point. The speed of the game at this level was also an adjustment. He’s building up his body thought diet and the weight room. I have a feeling that African players are simply not used to consuming large quantities of food because of the poverty in their countries and having to eat like an American athlete is still another adjustment. Playing against the bulky Coleman in practice has shown him that he has to get stronger so he can hold his ground in the paint against the type of players he will face.

Here is that tape I saw of him on that play for Providence:
Paschal Chukwu Throws it Down
(Actually it wasn’t off a block but rather a rebound. Your memory plays tricks on you at this age.)

I have also found this high school tape of Chukwu:
7'2" Paschal Chukwu is a Providence Friar!! Official Mixtape by Next Best Basketball

Neither he or Coleman are 35-40 minute a game players so I suspect they will split the positon, which will be interesting because they are the exact opposite of each other: a somewhat short but strong college center with limited mobility but who can score and rebound in the paint vs. a thin skyscraper lacking in some basic skills but who is incredibly long and athletic and could make the zone an almost impossible defense to score against unless you go off from outside. I’m guessing we might even have a different sort of line-up with Coleman in the game than with Chuwu in the game. Coleman should be surrounded by jump-shooters and guards who can feed the post. Chukwu won’t clog the lane and should be surrounded by drivers and guys who can run the court. We’ve got both. We’ll be a different team, depending on who is playing center.

We also have Tyler Lydon who did a fairly good job playing center when Coleman was out last year. He wasn’t ideal at 6-8 205, (basically Coleman’s height with Chukwu’s bulk), but he showed a knack for blocking shots with 67 blocks. He actually played center instead of the 6-9 217 Obokoh. Hopefully he won’t be needed in this capacity this year but it’s good to know he can play center if we need him. Taurean Thompson at 6-10 220 could also see time at center, so we’ve got good depth here.

 

[SWC75]

FORWARDS

Tyler Roberson, 6-8 226, senior

The starting forwards will be the “two Tylers”. (If Tyler Ennis had stayed for four years, this would be his senior year and we’d have three of them.) This Tyler is strong and, when he chooses to be, an aggressive rebounder. He works his game off of this one skill. He’s not much of a shooter and an average defender but when he gets the ball, he can score inside and becomes a double-double machine. He had seven of them, including 14 points and 20 rebounds in the win at Duke and 10 points and 18 rebounds in the NCAA victory over Dayton. On the flip side you’ll find 0 point 4 rebound and 4 point 2 rebound performances against Pittsburgh. That’s why Mike Hopkins keeps trying to find ways of motivating him to be “turned on Robie”. When he is, he’s a totally different player and we are a totally different team. Boeheim’s approach was to remind Roberson that he was at the end of his junior year now and that he expected Tyler to become one of the team’s leaders. It led to a big tournament.

With the options we now have at forward, (Lydon, Thompson or Moyer could all play his spot), we are hopeful of seeing more “turned on Robie” this year. If we don’t, someone else will be glad for the chance to show what they can do. I suspect they will be pretty turned on themselves.

“Turned on“ Tyler’s big game at Duke last year:


Here are his numbers last year:
30.8M 11.4P 11.0R 1.8A 1.0S 0.8B = 26.0+ 4.2MFG 1.5MFT 2.0TO 2.9PF = 10.6- = 15.4NP 5.7OE 9.7FG


Tyler Lydon, 6-9 223, sophomore

The NBA was hot after one of our freshman last year but it wasn’t Malachi Richardson, who jumped to the pros. It was Tyler Lydon, who didn’t. When I first heard of Lydon he was a skinny jump shooter who seemed like he might make a small forward but seemed to lack the bulk and skills to play inside, despite his height. Then came reports from summer and pre-season camp that current and past SU players who worked out with the team were highly impressed with his all-around game. He could shoot it but he could also drive to the basket, rebound and block shots. They said he was the guy on the roster most likely to be in the NBA. Shoot it he did: 40.5% from three point range. But he also shot 54% from two point range, grabbed 233 rebounds, stole the ball 42 times and blocked 67 shots. Sometimes he played on the perimeter, sometimes as a power forward, sometimes even at center, where he overtook Obokoh as the back-up center. Everything they had said about him over the summer had come true. There were predictions he’d join Richardson in declaring for the draft but fortunately, they didn’t come true. He looks to be the star of the team this year and a major all-American candidate.

The one NSFMY, (Not so fast, my friend…), is that Lydon last year was at best the third scoring option behind Gbinije and Cooney. When Richardson was hot, he was #4. This year he will be the focus of the defense. We’ve had players before, (Kris Joseph, CJ Fair), who were much more efficient when they were the 3rd or 4th option and struggled when they became the #1 option. We’ll see how he adjusts to it. He may be the player who most benefits from getting Gillon and White, who could take a lot of that defensive pressure of of Lydon and allow him to fully use his skills. He reminds me in some ways of Wes Johnson from 2010 team: an athletic shooter/scorer who can block shots from the forward positon. With Lydon and Chukwu in at the same time, there will be a lot of Spalding sandwiches on the menu for the other team.

Lydon as viewed from an NBA perspective:
Tyler Lydon 2017 Draft: Prospect Watch
Even the “weaknesses” section shows some pretty good moves. He just missed the shot.

Lydon’s stats from last year:
30.3M 13.4P 8.3R 1.5A 1.5S 2.4B = 27.1+ 4.9MFG 0.7MFT 1.7TO 3.6PF = 10.9- = 16.2NP 7.8OE 8.4FG


Taurean Thompson, 6-10 220, freshman

Taurean took a looooong time to decide which college he was coming to. His mother said he wanted to go some place where he would “start immediately”. That wasn’t going to happen here with the two Tylers. Both the Tylers are likely to be gone next year and that’s Taurean’s big chance. He finally decided to come her just before the fall semester began and we’re glad to have him. He’s a tall, rangy ‘Syracuse’ type forward who could play power forward or center. We won’t need a big contribution form him this year but if he’s ready to contribute immediately he’ll get some playing time. One of his big roles will be to turn on Tyler Roberson when he’s turned off by giving him some competition and Boeheim as extra option.

Mike McAllister: “Taurean isn't your typical high school big man. His strength separates himself from most in the 2016 class and his ability to rebound puts him in an elite bunch…..His size will give him an edge on the floor from his first day on campus as a Syracuse University student. Coach Smith told CuseNation.com that Taurean has a tremendous work ethic and is as skilled as any big man that has come through Brewster Academy under his watch.”

Georgetown wanted him: “Thompson is a long, lean big man prospect with an athletic build. He is not an overly explosive athlete, but he is a quick jumper with good timing and instinct. On the high school circuit, this allows him to be an effective rebounder and shot blocker. He is particularly effective as an offensive rebounder, often crashing the glass and putting the ball back in the hoop before the defender has a chance to react. Offensively, Thompson has good touch around the rim and has strong hands to corral passes on the interior. In addition, Thompson can step out and shoot out to around 15-17 feet, which is a good asset for a big man prospect. In the long run, Thompson could be a nice inside-outside threat.”

Some film of Thompson from a camp, (set to some loud, weird music):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZinRU5-Hgg


Matthew Moyer, 6-8 220, freshman

Moyer was player of the year in Ohio and the first of the newcomers to sign with Syracuse. My immediate reaction as that he was the guy who would “turn on Tyler” by giving Boeheim an option at Roberson’s spot. He’s not the only alternative anymore and he hurt his foot, developing, “"Grade 3 turf toe, which is the worst you can get," Moyer said Tuesday. "The sesamoid bone fractured and the ligament severed." (Syracuse.com). Ugh. Nonetheless, he seems to have healed rapidly enough he won’t need surgery. Still, he may have fallen behind others as an option and it’s not clear what contribution he will make this year.

It hasn’t prevented him from working out: “He's redistributed his weight. He left South Kent School weighing about 207, he said. He now weighs 222 and looks leaner and longer than he did in high school. "I gained a lot of muscle and lost a lot of fat. That's what it is," he said. "I feel like I'm more mobile, more active. I can move a little better than I used to."

Here is a scouting report prior to his injury: “Matt can stretch the floor, has a decent handle and can get by slower defenders from the perimeter. His 3-point shot is a work-in-progress, but he has the ability to get going and make defenders respect it. On the glass, Matt is a very good rebounder. He's a very versatile player, which will benefit everyone. He can play multiple positions, which will make him more valuable to Jim Boeheim.” (CuseNation).

Some film of Moyer, also from a camp but with much better music:
Matthew Moyer IS Ohio's TOP Rising Prospect (Syracuse Commit)

 

[SWC75]

GUARDS


Franklin Howard, 6-5 205, sophomore

Howard rode the pines most of his freshman year, largely because he didn’t have much of a shot. But he was a creative passer, (sometimes a little too creative for Coach Boeheim), and he has good size at the top of the zone. He’s said to be working on his shot and might be able to score enough to fight off all the newcomers in the backcourt for significant playing time.

Here are his numbers from last year:
9.6M 6.2P 5.1R 6.7A 2.0S 0.5B = 20.5+ 5.4MFG 1.7MFT 3.3TO 4.7PF = 15.1- = 5.4NP -0.9OE 6.3FG
He rebounded well for a guard and got a lot of assists, (JB called him our only true point guard). He had too many turnovers but still maintained a 2-1 ratio. He committed too many fouls. He played like a talented freshman in need of a jump shot.

Some highlights of one of Frank’s better games, against Gonzaga in the NCAAs:



John Gillon, 6-0 178, senior

Gillon, (shall we call him “One I”?), like Andrew White will now be playing for his third- and last- college team. He started out at Arkansas-Little Rock where he averaged 23 minutes and 10.6 points per game with 2.4 assists but 2.3 turnovers. He shot 39.4% from three point range. He moved on, (and up) to Colorado State where, in his first year he played 21 minutes a game but only scored 7.9. He still shot 39.5% from the arc, so the Rams must have had more scoring options than the Trojans. He averaged 3.2 assists and 1.2 turnovers so he was taking better care of the ball. Last year he scored 13.2 but his shooting suffered (33.3% from the arc). Here’s an interesting stat: Gillon’s shooting from two point range improved from 32.9% to 45.0%. He was becoming less dependent on his outside shot, (because defenses were coming out to defend it) and becoming much better at completing drives to the basket successfully. He averaged 3.8 assists and 2.3 turnovers, so he’s more of a scoring point guard than a passing one. He was an 88% free throw shooter, which is certainly an asset at the end of games. At 6-0 he’s not ideal at the top of the zone, but his quickness may enable him to harass the other team’s point guard on the way up court.

Here is a scouting report: "He's really quick. He'll be the quickest guy on the team. If not, then I'll be really impressed with the speed of somebody else on the Syracuse roster. "He can shoot it from deep. That creates a problem. You don't want to just let him take the shot, but you have to respect his speed.'' And "The thing that jumps out to me is his speed and quickness. He's a jet. We couldn't keep him in front of us. I'm not saying he's Chris Paul, but he's fast. "He can get in the lane and bother you. He's a little bit smaller than most Syracuse guards, but for Gillon, it's all about his speed and quickness.''

And: "First of all, he's a shooter. He shoots it from deep. That was the first thing on our scouting report for him. You'll see him pull up from 22, 23, 24 feet, past the NBA line. "He plays hard. All of (Colorado State coach Larry) Eustachy's guys play hard. That's their mantra. "He can play the point, but he's really a combo guard. He can handle the ball. He basically shared the point guard duties for them.''
(Both quotes are from assistant coaches from teams who played CSU last year, quoted on Syracuse.com.)

Here are last year’s numbers at CSU, per 40 minutes, as above:
31.7M 16.7P 3.6R 4.8A 1.0S 1.9B = 28.0+ 7.1MFG 0.8MFT 2.9TO 3.1PF = 13.9- = 14.1NP 8.8OE 5.3FG

Some highlights from Gillon’s junior year at CSU:
Future Syracuse Guard - John Gillon 2015/2016 Highlights
Sometimes there’s sound, sometimes there isn’t. But there will be plenty of sound when this guy is on the court at the Carrier Dome.


Andrew White, 6-7 220, senior

White was a more heralded recruit than Gillon had been and went to Kansas, hoping to become the latest All-American from that legendary program. He was buried on the bench for two years there, averaging 5 and then 6 minutes a game in the games in which he played – there were 29 gamesin those two years where he didn’t play at all. He then transferred to Nebraska and immediately became the star of the team, playing 30 minutes a game. He was second on the team in scoring with 16.6ppg and led the team in rebounding with 5.9 per game. He shot 56% from two point range, 41% from the arc and 77.5% from the line, so he is a superb, multi-threat scorer who can also help out on the boards. In a way, he’s the player we hoped Malachi Richardson could become if he had stayed.

He and Gillon will give us some of the firepower back we lost when we lost Gbinije, Cooney and Richardson and take some of the pressure off of Lydon to score and score from outside. One possible problem: White seems a natural forward but we have plenty of them and will need him in backcourt. He’ll supply plenty of height for the zone but will have to cover smaller men over a lot of space. And he’ll be farther from the basket than he is used to on offense. But I think he has the skills to adjust to that. One possible line-up could involve putting Lydon at power forward, White at small forward and some combination of Howard, Gillon and Battle in the backcourt. That could be a very potent line-up.

A scouting report: “White gives Syracuse a big time outside shooting threat, length, a natural scorer, quality athlete and positional versatility. The Nebraska transfer can play shooting guard or small forward, allowing the Orange to use a plethora of lineups depending on the situation. He also gives Syracuse another long athlete to place in the zone, and he has shown the ability to be a quality defender.” (CuseNation)

I also think he’s got a special motivation: he went to Kansas to be a star player for a top team and his dreams were crushed. At Nebraska he was a star player but not for a top team. Now he’s at Syracuse to finally become what he believes he should be. I’m not suggesting he’ll have an attiude problem if he’s not treated like the star of the team, just that this is last chance to make his dreams come true. That could be a very good thing for Syracuse.

Some White highlights with some words from Andrew and his coach at Nebraska:
Meet newly eligible transfer Andrew White
He seems like a guy who can contribute with smarts and leadership as well as physical skills.

His numbers at Nebraska last year:
29.7M 22.3P 7.9R 0.8A 1.5S 0.4B = 32.9+ 8.3MFG 1.0MFT 2.1TO 3.5PF = 14.9- = 18.0NP 13.0OE 5.0FG
The guys’ a shooter and a scorer. Nebraska isn’t a basketball power but in the Big Ten, they played penalty of teams who are, so those numbers are meaningful.


Tyus Battle, 6-6 205, freshman

Tyus was our highest- rated recruit at 5 stars. He just missed the McDonald’s All-American team, (and would have been a cinch for it had he gone to Duke). He’s another tall guard. He’s supposed to be great at driving the ball and is working on his outside shot. He wasn’t a point guard in high school but wants to be one in college because that’s his like positon in the NBA if he makes it there, (and I sense that he doesn’t see that as a problem). There could be some friction if he doesn’t win the point guard job. In interviews he seems somewhat like white – a well-spoken mature guy<9even as a freshman) who believes that he and this team are capable of anything they put their minds to. I’ll take all of those guys we can get.

Scouting reports:

“Battle is a dynamic wing scorer with range out to the three-point line who can beat defenders off the dribble and guard multiple positions. He potentially could play multiple positions in Syracuse’s backcourt; he has the creative intuition to man the point, the athleticism and craft to drive and finish at the rim and the shooting stroke to stretch defenses. Battle said Syracuse views him “more as a combo guard—play the point a little bit, play the two a little bit.” (Sports Illustrated) One phrase that comes up a lot in discussing Syracuse players: “multiple positons”. You depth isn’t just the number players or the number of reliable players, it’s the number of positons reliable players can play and thus the number of combinations you can use.

Draft Express, (evaluating him for the NBA):

Strengths
-Very developed frame. Big shoulders. Strong lower body. Not afraid of physicality on either end of the floor.
-6' 5” with a 6' 8” wingspan – solid measurements if he's able to transition into more of a SG than a SF. Measured closer to 6'7” in shoes previously.
-Good athlete. Can play above the rim in transition. Long strides.
-Excellent defender. Moves really well laterally. Aggressive defensively. Will pressure the ball and fight over screens. Multi-positional defender at the college level.
-Brings a level of toughness to the floor. Crashes the offensive glass with regularity
-Solid pull up game. Gets good rise on his jumper. Best in mid-range spots, but can make an open three.

Weaknesses
-Fairly limited ball handler. Can change speeds a little bit but is mostly limited to basic straight line drives.
-Not comfortable creating vs pressure, especially going to his left.
-Isn't quite as explosive as he looks. Struggles to finish effectively around the basket at times
-Career 40.9% from two. Doesn't get all the way to the rim as often as you would hope. Shoots a lot of pull up jumpers.
-Can make threes but has a slight hitch on his jumper. Shoots on the way down at times. Better off the dribble.

Outlook: Battle showed out as a defensive stopper type who can get out in transition and make an occasional spot three or pull up jumper. There isn't a ton to Battle's game on the offensive end, as he has quite a bit of room to improve his shot-creation skills and shooting consistency, but the Edison native will have no problem stepping into the ACC as a freshman and defending at a high level.”

He sounds like the perfect guy to front the zone but adjusting to the college game offensively may be a problem. But he’s a freshman. Look at how much Michael Gbinije improved in his career. People are talking about Battle as a one and done. I’d like to see him grow and refine his game here and then have the best possible chance to make it in the NBA. But then, I wanted Malachi Richardson to do the same thing.

His highlight film, mostly from SU practices:
Tyus Battle: Syracuse's Future
(Some nice views of the Melo Center)


That gives us 4 seniors, 0 juniors, 3 sophomores and 3 freshmen. One of the sophomores may be in the NBA next year so the deck will have to be reshuffled again. For his final year, (if that’s what it turns out to be), JB will probably have to bring in some more one year wonders. I’m not sure what will happen to his high school recruiting if he’s retiring. But that’s a problem for another year. This year we’ve got amazing size. We could go 7-2, 6-10, 6-9, 6-7, 6-6 if we wanted to. That’s NBA size, although our guys are a little skinnier. We might have some trouble guarding smaller, quicker teams but those teams won’t be able to rebound with us or shoot well unless they catch fire from long range.

ESPN’s Andy Katz: "Here is what Jim Boeheim told me. 'We've got everything. We've got depth. We've got shooters. We've got size. This is the best team we've had in a long time'." Like the 2012 team we can put a 7 foot, (+), shot-blocker in the middle of the zone and we went 30-1 the last time we had one. Like the 2010 team we have multiple inside scorers, multiple outside scorers, multiple ball handlers and multiple guys who can slash to the basket. We should be able to get out and run and we should be able to press if we have to, (and t coach wants to). We should at least be a formidable opponent for everyone we play and we could be cutting down the nets again in March.

NSFMF. I don’t see us going 30-1 in this league. There are a lot of new players who have to be blended in with returning players. It’s a team with veteran players but not a veteran team in the sense of a team that’s grown up together and has been playing together for a long time. Then there’s the perennial issue of who is going to emerge as a leader, (although someone always does). There are some trade-offs: We’ll be a different team with Coleman at center than with Chukwu and a different team if Gillon is playing the point than Howard or Battle.

But this team has so many varied talents that can fit together in so many ways that it has the look of a solved Rubik’s cube.

 

[SUalldway]

On the surface, it’s a strange year to have such grand ambitions. We lost 13 games. We lost our top three scorers –fifth year seniors Michael Gbinije and Trevor Cooney and freshman Malachi Richardson who broke out of an extended slump at just the right moment vs. Virginia and caught the eye of the NBA. Richardson looked as if he could become a big star on the college level but he wasn’t one yet and SU fans groaned when he took the NBA bait. We also lost little used back-up center Chinsoso Obohkoh and disappointing point guard Kaleb Joseph, who had started as a freshmen, both of whom transferred out. That was 5 of our 9 scholarship players.

That left us with:
DaJuan Coleman, a former McDonald’s All-American whose college career had been torpedoed by multiple knee surgeries
Tyler Roberson, a ferocious rebounder with few other skills whose ferociousness turned on and off like a light, such that assistant coach Mike Hopkins, (who will take over for JB when he leaves), called him “Turned on Robie” or “Turned off Robie”, depending on how he played in the last game.
Tyler Lydon, who had a promising freshman year but was not yet the primary focus of the defense, as he will be this year.
And Franklin Howard, a good passer who can’t shoot.

That’s the ‘right’ team?

A rule Boeheim actually doesn’t much like came to the rescue. A few years ago the NCAA declared that a player who had graduated from his current school but who had redshirted and still had a year of eligibility left could transfer to another school and play immediately if that other school had a course of graduate study not available at his current school. Predictably, schools developed classes in vague areas that simply sounded different from anything at other schools, (or, at least, had a different title). When quarterback Drew Allen transferred from Oklahoma to Syracuse, he was asked what he was majoring in and he couldn’t even answer the question. He pulled a card out of his pocket, dropped, picked it up and read it off. I forgot what they called it but he said it helped with “leadership” skills. Basically, the rule allowed fifth year seniors to become free agents and shop their services around. JB, (who doesn’t like change much anyway), took a dim view of it publically but realized that everybody else was going to take advantage of the rule and he needed to do so in a big way to remain competitive. He needed players and he got two good ones, lightening quick guard John Gillon, (only the one eye in his name, although there are two in his head, fortunately), from Colorado State and versatile swing man Andrew White from Nebraska, who can really rip the cords.

He already had a bird in the hand with Paschal Chukwu, the tallest player in Syracuse history at 7-2, who had transferred in after one year at Providence. The freshman recruiting class consisted of Tyus Battle, who just missed being a McDonald’s All-American and who can play either guard positon, (he wants to play the point because he figures that’s what he’d be in the NBA,) and forwards Taurean Thompson and Matthew Moyers. That gets us up to ten scholarship players, meaning we can go 5 on 5 in practice with no walk-ons, which we could not do last year. It will be probably the tallest team we’ve ever had, which really helps the zone. It will also be an offensively versatile team and, potentially, our first truly deep team since the 2012 steamroller. The biggest question but maybe the best thing is how the individual talents seem to fit together. The most interesting thing will be to see how Boeheim, the Hall of Famer, will use those talents.

100% agree, especially how it will be "most interesting ... to see how Boeheim...will use those talents." Might be JB's biggest challenge in a long time to see how he blends the deep roster, given that each player brings significant strengths and "relative" weakeness.

 

[bballbeadle]

SWC, these write ups are absolutely fantastic! What a nice way to spend a Sunday morning down here in North Carolina, ACC country. I think this going to be a memorable season, and not getting back to the final four would be a disappointment for sure. All of us are now yearning for that national championship for Boeheim as well as for ourselves. This team could certainly deliver !

 

[Flacusian]

SWC... as I've often said here before... you are an incredible asset to this board. The depth, breadth, and statistical precision you incorporate into your posts are nothing short of amazing. It's not lost on me how much time it takes to put together such an awesome post. Kudos X 10 to you!!!!!

 

[kcsu]

You should get a lifetime free membership to the paid side