Reply to thread

Message: [QUOTE="SWC75, post: 1934029, member: 289"] FORWARDS [I]Tyler Roberson, 6-8 226, senior [/I] 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: [MEDIA=youtube]_iCIo21nvT8[/MEDIA] 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 [I]Tyler Lydon, 6-9 223, sophomore[/I] 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: [URL="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXbIlexlnLM"]Tyler Lydon 2017 Draft: Prospect Watch[/URL] 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 [I]Taurean Thompson, 6-10 220, freshman[/I] 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): [URL='https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZinRU5-Hgg'][I]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZinRU5-Hgg[/I][/URL] [I]Matthew Moyer, 6-8 220, freshman[/I] 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: [URL="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Pcy9e1UHFs"]Matthew Moyer IS Ohio's TOP Rising Prospect (Syracuse Commit)[/URL] [/QUOTE]

Verification: What is a Syracuse fan's favorite color?