Postgame thoughts... Pitt (game 2)

[Orangezoo]

All I can say is .. Now What?

 

[MSOrange]

I had A LOT of gripes w that team, but they were light years better.

They couldn't be play defense worth a darn, but I think they had enough athleticism that we didn't get beat coming out of the locker room

 

[Fly Rodder]

That goddamn Tyler Ennis ruined this once great program.

 

[CuseTG2003]

They couldn't be play defense worth a darn, but I think they had enough athleticism that we didn't get beat coming out of the locker room

They definitely looked the part. This year, not so much.

 

[CuseTG2003]

All I can say is .. Now What?

I mean, this is who we are. Nothing to do but ride it out until the next coach. It sucks.

 

[Scooch]

Have we played a Kadary/Griffin/Braswell/Guerrier lineup at all this season?

 

[OrangeDW]

They couldn't be play defense worth a darn, but I think they had enough athleticism that we didn't get beat coming out of the locker room

And the JG that played PG on that team was a billion times better than this JG, even if both were undersized and poor defenders. Gillon was unguardable when he was on.

 

[MSOrange]

And the JG that played PG on that team was a billion times better than this JG, even if both were undersized and poor defenders. Gillon was unguardable when he was on.

100%. I hate to pile on, but he's not good enough to play at this level unless he can make a few jumpers and play 10-20 minutes per game as a role player. This isn't Glen Falls.

 

[djcon57]

Have we played a Kadary/Griffin/Braswell/Guerrier lineup at all this season?

Cant do it. Spacing,
we might lose by more or something

 

[Scooch]

Cant do it. Spacing,
we might lose by more or something

It’s simply mind blowing how he’s not trying different combos. But that would mean taking his son off the floor for 5 minutes. So non starter.

 

[CuseTG2003]

Why not try Kadary and Woody up top for a few mins again? Shake things up and keep it interesting.

 

[Ghost]

Why not try Kadary and Woody up top for a few mins again? Shake things up and keep it interesting.

Regardless, I think Woody has hit the "token minutes, and one missed shot and you're done" portion of his season. So, unless he can have a Braswell type game where he's immediately hot, or injuries, I think his PT will remain limited.

 

[djcon57]

Why not try Kadary and Woody up top for a few mins again? Shake things up and keep it interesting.

we all know the answer.

because if it works, he will have to continue to use it which means Joe and Buddy have to sit.

 

[CuseTG2003]

Regardless, I think Woody has hit the "token minutes, and one missed shot and you're done" portion of his season. So, unless he can have a Braswell type game where he's immediately hot, or injuries, I think his PT will remain limited.

Which is so weird given JB’s effusive praise early in the season. I understand if he’s been out and not able to practice, which I guess has been the case.

 

[Col. Bleep]

Three points:

1. One of the very rare times I've felt embarrassed to be a Syracuse fan.

2. The turning point was when the Orange cut the lead to 5 and Capel called time...stopped the momentum and regrouped.
Doubt Jim Boeheim would have done that.

3. We now know who the better team is.

 

[capeorange]

champagnie was a brut inside.

Well played

 

[SWC75]

I'm quite sure that if my questions were screened, my call would never be taken by the host.

They just ask you what subject you want to ask about. the rest is up to you.

 

[SWC75]

Have we played a Kadary/Griffin/Braswell/Guerrier lineup at all this season?

No. That's only 4 guys.

 

[Scooch]

No. That's only 4 guys.

We’ve been playing 4 on 5 for most of the season anyway.

 

[Dinkyspond]

I agree with literally this entire post. It would have been nice to see what Newton could do today. Agree about Joe being 10-25 minutes to see if he is making any shots. If not, what's the point of him?

I feel bad for Quincy. He can only do so much

Don't feel so bad for Quincy. He may sneak into the first round. A bright spot in a horrendous season.

 

[NineOneSeven]

Haven’t seen any General20 recaps lately. Would love some of your thoughts.

 

[Orangefan1]

I don’t want to bail on Girard because we have all seen how good he can be and how he has helped us before. We know his liabilities when it comes to defense but the trade off is facilitating the offense and making shots. This year he put on weight and he looks slower and more out of breath. I think these pauses have really hurt our team this year but him the most. He just doesn’t seem to be in rhythm. I hope he gets going because of our guards play like this we will absolutely have a losing season. So disappointing because the team has some potential.

 

[General20]

Haven’t seen any General20 recaps lately. Would love some of your thoughts.

The short answer is covid sucks. I'm honestly not sure how anybody can get worked up about a team that spent most of the off season and 5 weeks during the regular season (more for some) not being able to practice.

Time off is going to hit every team different. We play zone defense which involves all five players moving in unison, it takes a lot of time working together to get right. Every week our guys had to quarantine sets us behind our competition, even if they quarantine as well.

Add to that we lost our most irreplaceable player in Sidibe. He's a player with flaws for sure, but our 3 young centers aren't ready for the big time yet, and Dolezaj is good enough until he's not good enough anymore. Pitt and North Carolina are two teams where Dolezaj just isn't good enough at center, and we were in the lead late against both (Pitt the first time, obviously). They both would have been big wins with Sidibe.

I was pretty high on this team going into the season, but if you look at my review of our first game I said that losing Sidibe would torpedo the season. We just couldn't afford to lose him.

Is it any wonder our defense sucks? Our defense could do nothing but suck. The only thing that could turn it around are several weeks of practice together and our starting center back. I don't think we will have the luxury of either.

Our other loss Rutgers we were missing two starters in Boeheim and Sidibe. But it was Boeheim who we missed the most. Girard and Richmond are absolutely terrible as a duo, and neither could stop Rutgers PG from driving the lane at the end of that game.

The narrative that Boeheim and Girard are terrible on D and Richmond is great but and is getting undeservedly benched is one that makes me mad. Its all about narrative and has no basis in reality. Richmond has looked better in the last two games but early in the season he was absolutely rotten on D. Especially against Rutgers and Buffalo. He gets his steals and blocks, and that seems to mask everything else for most people, but take my word for it (or go back and watch the highlights) when he doesn't get a steal he's getting blown past far too often. Once against Buffalo he got absolutely smoked off the dribble by their 240 pound center. Then with 20 seconds left in regulation and Syracuse up by 3, he let a Buffalo guy drill a 3 in his face without even raising his hands to contest. If Buddy or Girard ever made mistakes like those there would be a 200 page long thread calling for Boeheim to retire. With Richmond people are saying he should be playing more. Its crazy to me. Buddy is underrated as a defender, Girard isn't very good, but he's never made mistakes quite that bad.

Point guard is an issue for us, of course. Girard has taken a step back this year. I think its understandable. Girard is clearly doesn't have the natural basketball body or athletic gifts you expect from a D1 guard. He overcomes that with work and skill. It makes sense to me that when everybody has to quarantine the guys who rely the most on hard work will be hurt the most. We don't need Girard to be an all league player, we need him to be slightly better than he was as a freshman (which was a solid ACC player). I expect we will see that again last year.

I watched Richmond a lot in high school. He started out as a poor shooter, but by the end of his senior year he was hitting shots with confidence. Then covid hit and Richmond was living in NYC where the lockdown was the most restrictive. During a lost offseason, a step up in competition, and a fractured practice schedule, his shot seems to have left him again. I would consider this understandable. But he's barely playable with his shot the way it is. I do think he's a real talent. I think he's going to come good. I like that Richmond and Girard have opposite strengths, and I think they will make a good tandem in the future, but right now our point guard position is a mess.

I don't think I'll be making too many long break down of games. I honestly can't bring myself to care. There is no competitive balance this year (in a sport that struggles with that anyway) and without it I can't take anything that happens seriously. And its not just Syracuse either. This is the first time since the 60's that none of Duke, UNC, or Kentucky are in the top 25. Its a weird year for very understandable reasons. If you told me Syracuse was definitely going to play all the rest of their games I'd get more emotionally involved, but I wouldn't bet on that happening (for any team).

 

[NineOneSeven]

The short answer is covid sucks. I'm honestly not sure how anybody can get worked up about a team that spent most of the off season and 5 weeks during the regular season (more for some) not being able to practice.

Time off is going to hit every team different. We play zone defense which involves all five players moving in unison, it takes a lot of time working together to get right. Every week our guys had to quarantine sets us behind our competition, even if they quarantine as well.

Add to that we lost our most irreplaceable player in Sidibe. He's a player with flaws for sure, but our 3 young centers aren't ready for the big time yet, and Dolezaj is good enough until he's not good enough anymore. Pitt and North Carolina are two teams where Dolezaj just isn't good enough at center, and we were in the lead late against both (Pitt the first time, obviously). They both would have been big wins with Sidibe.

I was pretty high on this team going into the season, but if you look at my review of our first game I said that losing Sidibe would torpedo the season. We just couldn't afford to lose him.

Is it any wonder our defense sucks? Our defense could do nothing but suck. The only thing that could turn it around are several weeks of practice together and our starting center back. I don't think we will have the luxury of either.

Our other loss Rutgers we were missing two starters in Boeheim and Sidibe. But it was Boeheim who we missed the most. Girard and Richmond are absolutely terrible as a duo, and neither could stop Rutgers PG from driving the lane at the end of that game.

The narrative that Boeheim and Girard are terrible on D and Richmond is great but and is getting undeservedly benched is one that makes me mad. Its all about narrative and has no basis in reality. Richmond has looked better in the last two games but early in the season he was absolutely rotten on D. Especially against Rutgers and Buffalo. He gets his steals and blocks, and that seems to mask everything else for most people, but take my word for it (or go back and watch the highlights) when he doesn't get a steal he's getting blown past far too often. Once against Buffalo he got absolutely smoked off the dribble by their 240 pound center. Then with 20 seconds left in regulation and Syracuse up by 3, he let a Buffalo guy drill a 3 in his face without even raising his hands to contest. If Buddy or Girard ever made mistakes like those there would be a 200 page long thread calling for Boeheim to retire. With Richmond people are saying he should be playing more. Its crazy to me. Buddy is underrated as a defender, Girard isn't very good, but he's never made mistakes quite that bad.

Point guard is an issue for us, of course. Girard has taken a step back this year. I think its understandable. Girard is clearly doesn't have the natural basketball body or athletic gifts you expect from a D1 guard. He overcomes that with work and skill. It makes sense to me that when everybody has to quarantine the guys who rely the most on hard work will be hurt the most. We don't need Girard to be an all league player, we need him to be slightly better than he was as a freshman (which was a solid ACC player). I expect we will see that again last year.

I watched Richmond a lot in high school. He started out as a poor shooter, but by the end of his senior year he was hitting shots with confidence. Then covid hit and Richmond was living in NYC where the lockdown was the most restrictive. During a lost offseason, a step up in competition, and a fractured practice schedule, his shot seems to have left him again. I would consider this understandable. But he's barely playable with his shot the way it is. I do think he's a real talent. I think he's going to come good. I like that Richmond and Girard have opposite strengths, and I think they will make a good tandem in the future, but right now our point guard position is a mess.

I don't think I'll be making too many long break down of games. I honestly can't bring myself to care. There is no competitive balance this year (in a sport that struggles with that anyway) and without it I can't take anything that happens seriously. And its not just Syracuse either. This is the first time since the 60's that none of Duke, UNC, or Kentucky are in the top 25. Its a weird year for very understandable reasons. If you told me Syracuse was definitely going to play all the rest of their games I'd get more emotionally involved, but I wouldn't bet on that happening (for any team).

Thanks for the reply. Yeah, I think we all know it's a weird year. But it is what it is. I refuse to just call it a lost season because of the tough circumstances. It's definitely an added element, no argument. I've said it a bunch, selection sunday (TBD) is going to be something.

 

[chugg21]

Some folks can blame Covid but it just looks exactly like a continuation of the past few seasons. What's happening that is all that different from last year? Just substitute a worse player at SF and it's the exact same season.