Over/under 8.5 scholarship players next year

[721Comstock]

Leading scorer by a lot. Best shooter. Most impactful player. Idiotic to play him less minutes.

Yeah, except - NONE of that was actually true last season, until Feb or March.

At one point midway thru the season, all 3 of Q, Griff, and Buddy were TIED as our leading scorer(s).

Here's Buddy's game log:

Buddy Boeheim 2023-24 Stats per Game - NBA - ESPN

The 2023-24 NBA season stats per game for Buddy Boeheim of the Oklahoma City Thunder on ESPN. Includes full stats, per opponent, for regular and postseason.

www.espn.com

He had PLENTY OF GAMES where he scored single digits on CRAP shooting, yet still played 30+ minutes.

1/12 vs Northeastern in 33 minutes? WOOF.
3/12 in the inexplicable home L vs. Pitt? UGH.
4/12 in the boatrace L @ Pitt. 40 minutes!!!! WHY???!!!!
3/13 in the L @ Clemson, 35 minutes.

Regardless of whether Buddy was reeking on ice, or en fuego, he got 30++ minutes each and every game.
That. is. INSANE.

He's not a Carmelo-level talent, where he does so much other stuff well, you just have to play him All. The. Minutes.

IF he's not scoring, he doesn't add anything else to the team.
He's not a playmaker (he did improve on that a bit late), he's a terrible rebounder, and minus defender.

When a guy like that is struggling, it's time to ride the pine and try somebody, anybody else.
Like any coach would do with ANY OTHER PLAYER.

 

[GoSU96]

Go on?

Practice

 

[Melancer46]

Yeah, except - NONE of that was actually true last season, until Feb or March.

At one point midway thru the season, all 3 of Q, Griff, and Buddy were TIED as our leading scorer(s).

Here's Buddy's game log:

Buddy Boeheim 2023-24 Stats per Game - NBA - ESPN

The 2023-24 NBA season stats per game for Buddy Boeheim of the Oklahoma City Thunder on ESPN. Includes full stats, per opponent, for regular and postseason.

www.espn.com

He had PLENTY OF GAMES where he scored single digits on CRAP shooting, yet still played 30+ minutes.

1/12 vs Northeastern in 33 minutes? WOOF.
3/12 in the inexplicable home L vs. Pitt? UGH.
4/12 in the boatrace L @ Pitt. 40 minutes!!!! WHY???!!!!
3/13 in the L @ Clemson, 35 minutes.

Regardless of whether Buddy was reeking on ice, or en fuego, he got 30++ minutes each and every game.
That. is. INSANE.

He's not a Carmelo-level talent, where he does so much other stuff well, you just have to play him All. The. Minutes.

IF he's not scoring, he doesn't add anything else to the team.
He's not a playmaker (he did improve on that a bit late), he's a terrible rebounder, and minus defender.

When a guy like that is struggling, it's time to ride the pine and try somebody, anybody else.
Like any coach would do with ANY OTHER PLAYER.

Buddy should be out there almost all game even when he's off. He certainly doesn't help on defense, but he's the only player on the court that defenses are scared of. He provides gravity that no other player on our team does, and in an offense with almost no players capable of creating their own shots, that matters a lot.

I definitely hope he's able to find more consistency next year though so those poor shooting games are not as frequent.

 

[NineOneSeven]

Practice

I don't even remember the context of this now!

 

[721Comstock]

Buddy should be out there almost all game even when he's off. He certainly doesn't help on defense, but he's the only player on the court that defenses are scared of. He provides gravity that no other player on our team does, and in an offense with almost no players capable of creating their own shots, that matters a lot.

I definitely hope he's able to find more consistency next year though so those poor shooting games are not as frequent.

Nobody is saying don't play him at all.
But how about cutting back his minutes? And giving other guys a chance to contribute?

But - if and when he's not hitting, and other than SPACING! he's not adding anything else, what's the harm in trying some other guys, to find a spark??

That's where I think that Pitino is a much better game coach than JB - he uses his bench.
(and also mixes up defenses)

Remember the last game in Freedom Hall, when some walk-on scrub named Kyle Kuric went to plaid against us??
And then because a scholarship player, and had a very nice college career for Llvll?

That sorta thing will literally NEVER happen at Syracuse.

 

[Alsacs]

Buddy should be out there almost all game even when he's off. He certainly doesn't help on defense, but he's the only player on the court that defenses are scared of. He provides gravity that no other player on our team does, and in an offense with almost no players capable of creating their own shots, that matters a lot.

I definitely hope he's able to find more consistency next year though so those poor shooting games are not as frequent.

Depends on if the backup can do different things for the offense when he is off.

What does spacing do for our offense if our PG can’t beat his defender off the dribble or we don’t have a post game?

If the backup couldn’t shoot the 3 as well but could drive the basketball better it might be a better alternative if Buddy struggled.

I don’t think he should play 35+ if he is off and we have a viable bench.
The problem is why don’t have a viable bench anymore because we don’t play the bench much anymore.

 

[Melancer46]

Depends on if the backup can do different things for the offense when he is off.

What does spacing do for our offense if our PG can’t beat his defender off the dribble or we don’t have a post game?

If the backup couldn’t shoot the 3 as well but could drive the basketball better it might be a better alternative if Buddy struggled.

I don’t think he should play 35+ if he is off and we have a viable bench.
The problem is why don’t have a viable bench anymore because we don’t play the bench much anymore.

Yeah, that more goes to what I said all year: Kadary should be playing a ton over Girard. Teams don't fear Joe the way they do Buddy, and like Buddy, he doesn't really bring anything else to the floor besides making 3's sometimes.

But yeah, I would tend to agree, if we had other players on our bench that really deserve those minutes, I'd have no problem trying something else. Unfortunately we only had 3 guards that could play this year unless you wanted to try Griffin or Woody at guard, but they're both forwards in my eyes, and Griffin couldn't handle playing forward in the zone after practicing it all year, much less trying him at the top of the zone defensively.

It's most likely going to be the same situation next year if not worse: we don't have the guard depth to be able to pull Buddy if he's having an off night, nor do we have other answers offensively in general if he isn't on the floor.

 

[Melancer46]

Nobody is saying don't play him at all.
But how about cutting back his minutes? And giving other guys a chance to contribute?

But - if and when he's not hitting, and other than SPACING! he's not adding anything else, what's the harm in trying some other guys, to find a spark??

That's where I think that Pitino is a much better game coach than JB - he uses his bench.
(and also mixes up defenses)

Remember the last game in Freedom Hall, when some walk-on scrub named Kyle Kuric went to plaid against us??
And then because a scholarship player, and had a very nice college career for Llvll?

That sorta thing will literally NEVER happen at Syracuse.

We had 3 guards on our team last year, one of which is essentially a worse and shorter version of Buddy. There weren't any other guys to give the chance to, especially on a team that desperately needed Buddy's spacing to give anyone else a chance of being able to get a shot off.

 

[AlpharettaCuse]

Yeah, except - NONE of that was actually true last season, until Feb or March.

At one point midway thru the season, all 3 of Q, Griff, and Buddy were TIED as our leading scorer(s).

Here's Buddy's game log:

Buddy Boeheim 2023-24 Stats per Game - NBA - ESPN

The 2023-24 NBA season stats per game for Buddy Boeheim of the Oklahoma City Thunder on ESPN. Includes full stats, per opponent, for regular and postseason.

www.espn.com

He had PLENTY OF GAMES where he scored single digits on CRAP shooting, yet still played 30+ minutes.

1/12 vs Northeastern in 33 minutes? WOOF.
3/12 in the inexplicable home L vs. Pitt? UGH.
4/12 in the boatrace L @ Pitt. 40 minutes!!!! WHY???!!!!
3/13 in the L @ Clemson, 35 minutes.

Regardless of whether Buddy was reeking on ice, or en fuego, he got 30++ minutes each and every game.
That. is. INSANE.

He's not a Carmelo-level talent, where he does so much other stuff well, you just have to play him All. The. Minutes.

IF he's not scoring, he doesn't add anything else to the team.
He's not a playmaker (he did improve on that a bit late), he's a terrible rebounder, and minus defender.

When a guy like that is struggling, it's time to ride the pine and try somebody, anybody else.
Like any coach would do with ANY OTHER PLAYER.

What player has not struggled at times during the season? Guerrier and Griffin have been no-shows at times as well. Buddy has had fewer single digit scoring games then both of them.

Who did you want playing over Buddy?

At the end of the day, at the end of the season and when it mattered most, Buddy was clearly our best player. He is our best player and will be again next season.

 

[orangecuse]

Yes. What else do you want him to do?

Leading scorer by a lot. Best shooter. Most impactful player. Idiotic to play him less minutes.

So very interesting. How you apparently fail to see the direct correlation between Buddy being our best player, best shooter, most impactful player, etc. and the fact that Syracuse University's basketball program hasn't been ranked in the Top 25 during the regular season come January since 2014. Buddy himself stated during S16 week in an interview how he never expected he would ever be "the guy" here, vs. being a guy who could come off the bench and contribute in certain situations, etc. I mean, that's right from the horse's mouth.

If this isn't a testament to how far the talent level of this program has fallen, then I don't know what is. It isn't difficult to see at all, unless of course, you are looking through teenager type lenses crushing over a lead singer of some boy band.

 

[Alsacs]

What player has not struggled at times during the season? Guerrier and Griffin have been no-shows at times as well. Buddy has had fewer single digit scoring games then both of them.

Who did you want playing over Buddy?

Quincy Guerrier made 3rd team all-ACC.
Buddy was tremendous the last month and half this season.
He is a good player.

It’s not undisputed he was our best player this season.
You can say we played our best as a team when Buddy was hot.
Buddy closed tremendously.

Quincy was voted better.
Alan Griffin was honorable mention all-ACC.

We had a 3 head attack till buddy went crazy at the end of of the year.

 

[AlpharettaCuse]

So very interesting. How you apparently fail to see the direct correlation between Buddy being our best player, best shooter, most impactful player, etc. and the fact that Syracuse University's basketball program hasn't been ranked in the Top 25 come January since 2014. Buddy himself stated during S16 week in an interview how he never expected he would ever be "the guy" here, vs. being a guy who could come off the bench and contribute in certain situations, etc. I mean, that's right from the horse's mouth.

This is a testament to how far the talent level of this program has fallen. It isn't difficult to see at all, unless of course, you are looking through teenager type lenses crushing over a lead singer of some boy band.

You keep using 2014. We made the FF in 2016 and finished #10.

2015-16 Coaches Poll Men's College Basketball Rankings, Final Rankings - ESPN

Find the complete NCAAM Final Rankings rankings on ESPN. Includes the full votes and trend for the top 25 NCAAM teams.

www.espn.com

We have a shot to be ranked in this season's final poll.

Buddy can play, obviously, and will likely by All ACC next season. I get that the talent level has dropped, and there are a few reasons for that, which I covered.

 

[AlpharettaCuse]

Quincy Guerrier made 3rd team all-ACC.
Buddy was tremendous the last month and half this season.
He is a good player.

It’s not undisputed he was our best player this season.
You can say we played our best as a team when Buddy was hot.
Buddy closed tremendously.

Quincy was voted better.
Alan Griffin was honorable mention all-ACC.

We had a 3 head attack till buddy went crazy at the end of of the year.

Yeah...that doesn't really matter. Anyone watching knows Buddy is the guy. Do you think Griffin is better? I don't either. Buddy missed 3 ACC games and the vote was taken before the ACCT.

 

[orangecuse]

You keep using 2014. We made the FF in 2016 and finished #10.

2015-16 Coaches Poll Men's College Basketball Rankings, Final Rankings - ESPN

Find the complete NCAAM Final Rankings rankings on ESPN. Includes the full votes and trend for the top 25 NCAAM teams.

www.espn.com

We have a shot to be ranked in this season's final poll.

Buddy can play, obviously, and will likely by All ACC next season. I get that the talent level has dropped, and there are a few reasons for that, which I covered.

During the regular season come January of 2014. We finished 10th after that incredible 2016 tourney run.

 

[AlpharettaCuse]

During the regular season come January of 2014. We finished 10th after that incredible 2016 tourney run.

Which is better? Final poll or mid-season?

 

[721Comstock]

Which is better? Final poll or mid-season?

 

[Alsacs]

Which is better? Final poll or mid-season?

By this metric we have only finished as one of the top 25 teams one time in the last 6 years and it could be 7 years if we don’t make it this year.

That isn’t good.

Again what are you expectations for the Syracuse program.
Are we a top program or middle of the conference team.

 

[Alsacs]

We haven’t played a regular season conference game as a ranked team in 7 years.

But we made the Final Four in 2016 so everyone shut up.

 

[721Comstock]

Is it too late to hammer the OVER?

Asking for a friend.

 

[AlpharettaCuse]

Probably would have been the case if Sidibe didn't get hurt.

 

[AlpharettaCuse]

By this metric we have only finished as one of the top 25 teams one time in the last 6 years and it could be 7 years if we don’t make it this year.

That isn’t good.

Again what are you expectations for the Syracuse program.
Are we a top program or middle of the conference team.

Again...sanctions, Hop leaving, uncertainty around JB, some injuries, and some bad luck.

I already answered your expectations question earlier.

 

[AlpharettaCuse]

We haven’t played a regular season conference game as a ranked team in 7 years.

But we made the Final Four in 2016 so everyone shut up.

I mean, so what? There are many reasons for that. FF's and Sweet 16's count.

 

[Alsacs]

Probably would have been the case if Sidibe didn't get hurt.

If you want to speculate then on the other side people could say he would foul trouble every single game and it wouldn’t have made a difference on our record.
If you just want to throw blanket speculation out. Then the counter side can say his injury wouldn’t have had any impact because he is foul prone.

 

[orangecuse]

Which is better? Final poll or mid-season?

Better? Well, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. I'll will say this. I'd much rather be getting some solid action all year, vs. just on an anniversary type occasion.

 

[AlpharettaCuse]

If you want to speculate then on the other side people could say he would foul trouble every single game and it wouldn’t have made a difference on our record.
If you just want to throw blanket speculation out. Then the counter side can say his injury wouldn’t have had any impact because he is foul prone.

I'll speculate that having our starting center , who played well at the end of last season, makes us a better team.