Syracuse hiring Alex Kline as GM

[florange44]

Considering Lampkin is averaging 11 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists on positive a/to ratio on 56% shooting, I don't think he is the problem.

He's given us exactly what we expected, based on his career. Lampkin had even tied his career high in blocks already, and it's likely he'll set a career high in steals as well.

He would look a lot better if Bell was out there instead of Lucas Taylor, and Bell was hitting 42% of his threes on high volume, like most of us expected going into this season.

In fact, if Westry was healthy, and playing instead of Carlos, the whole season might look completely different.

Offensively, he’s what we expected. And even rebounding.

However, I can not accept his level of defensive indifference, incompetence, or downright “don’t give a ” in a major college player, let alone one who is making $800k. His defense is not even acceptable at the high school level.

He IS part of the problem.

 

[sufan59]

Kline might be able to turn this thing around and save Red’s job. The problem is what happens when Kline eventually moves on to something else.

Does anyone know how the reporting structure works? Does Autry report to Kline or Kline reports to Autry. I’m pretty sure it’s Kline reports to Autry. But if we have success next season with Kline, you got to think that maybe we formalize the front office actually being the front office.

 

[Cheriehoop]

Considering Lampkin is averaging 11 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists on positive a/to ratio on 56% shooting, I don't think he is the problem.

He's given us exactly what we expected, based on his career. Lampkin had even tied his career high in blocks already, and it's likely he'll set a career high in steals as well.

He would look a lot better if Bell was out there instead of Lucas Taylor, and Bell was hitting 42% of his threes on high volume, like most of us expected going into this season.

In fact, if Westry was healthy, and playing instead of Carlos, the whole season might look completely different.

It has to be a tough balancing act - Taylor is a much better defender, heck he held RJ Davis, UNC’s best player, to below his scoring average and one of his worst 3 point fg% all season. Bell is obviously the better player offensively. I wonder if that last SU play was intended for Bell to shoot not Cuffe remembering the Cuffe-Bell issue a few games ago. Red said the players didn’t follow the called play when Cuffe took that 3 pointer. Can’t help but wonder what the called play was since that shot definitely wasn’t the call.

 

[GHLF]

Well we have to admit we had a winning roster with 20 wins in 2023-2024 really with sophomores. The final standings showed us tied with Clemson in 5th place in the ACC regardless how unhappy many people may have been with the team. That was just last year.

2023-24 Men's Basketball Standings - Atlantic Coast Conference

The official 2023-24 Men's Basketball Standings for Atlantic Coast Conference

theacc.com

With Coach Autry at the helm, massive pre, intra and post season drama as well. I would emphatically like to know why coach Boeheim's discussion with Steve Infanti and Pauly is not being discussed giving insight on this season, how many we missed in the portal, massive turnover and how we missed on players because we did not spend enough money. If he had Dakota, Malik and retention of Quadir with the portal class we have in my opinion that we would be talking about how coach Adrian Autry was a tremendous acquisition for the program concerning continuity. It did not happen for the above reasons. I have yet to see this discussion. I cannot Judge him fairly at this point, I simply cannot. JJ and EL are the only ACC level starters we have at this point. The rest are good off-the-bench players, old cuse with great normal development down the road. We did not have the time for that to occur...

 

[GHLF]

It has to be a tough balancing act - Taylor is a much better defender, heck he held RJ Davis, UNC’s best player, to below his scoring average and one of his worst 3 point fg% all season. Bell is obviously the better player offensively. I wonder if that last SU play was intended for Bell to shoot not Cuffe remembering the Cuffe-Bell issue a few games ago. Red said the players didn’t follow the called play when Cuffe took that 3 pointer. Can’t help but wonder what the called play was since that shot definitely wasn’t the call.

Horrific shot, he was brought in to lock up, not shoot imo

 

[GHLF]

Bell is shooting 45% from 3 in the last 13 games and 42% in conference. But he doesn’t get the number of shots as before.

He does not have a true 1, with glaring defensive lapses. He literally gets bullied massively

 

[djcon57]

If he had Dakota, Malik and retention of Quadir with the portal class we have in my opinion that we would be talking about how coach Adrian Autry was a tremendous acquisition for the program concerning continuity.

imagine if we had Cooper Flagg!!!

 

[hoopsupstate]

Bell’s problem is not his shooting, it’s just his lack of having a nose for the ball. The rebound he watched hitting the floor and never making a move to get it, got him sat down for a long time yesterday. He’s the least aggressive kid I’ve ever seen play at SU. If he comes back next year he will need to get a substantial reduction of his NIL. He’s not living up to his amount he’s getting. Actually, after this year he should pay into the collective not receive money from it.

 

[djcon57]

Bell is shooting 45% from 3 in the last 13 games and 42% in conference. But he doesn’t get the number of shots as before.

He can’t get open and doesn’t shoot it when he is.

I counted at least 4 times yesterday he would have pulled the trigger last year

 

[sufan59]

With Coach Autry at the helm, massive pre, intra and post season drama as well. I would emphatically like to know why coach Boeheim's discussion with Steve Infanti and Pauly is not being discussed giving insight on this season, how many we missed in the portal, massive turnover and how we missed on players because we did not spend enough money. If he had Dakota, Malik and retention of Quadir with the portal class we have in my opinion that we would be talking about how coach Adrian Autry was a tremendous acquisition for the program concerning continuity. It did not happen for the above reasons. I have yet to see this discussion. I cannot Judge him fairly at this point, I simply cannot. JJ and EL are the only ACC level starters we have at this point. Good off the bench players old cuse with great normal development down the road. We did not have the time for that to occur...

We are 126 in the Ken Pom as of today. Our roster has a talent composite coming in, I would estimate 50th in the country taking into account player ratings. We’re performing below our talent level which wasn’t high enough where it needs to be to compete for a national championship. But still good enough to have a winning record at this point in the season.

 

[STEVEHOLT]

With Coach Autry at the helm, massive pre, intra and post season drama as well. I would emphatically like to know why coach Boeheim's discussion with Steve Infanti and Pauly is not being discussed giving insight on this season, how many we missed in the portal, massive turnover and how we missed on players because we did not spend enough money. If he had Dakota, Malik and retention of Quadir with the portal class we have in my opinion that we would be talking about how coach Adrian Autry was a tremendous acquisition for the program concerning continuity. It did not happen for the above reasons. I have yet to see this discussion. I cannot Judge him fairly at this point, I simply cannot. JJ and EL are the only ACC level starters we have at this point. Good off the bench players old cuse with great normal development down the road. We did not have the time for that to occur...

He had a press against Miami where the DESIGN was Cuffe as rim protector last line of defense dude. That disqualifies him from coaching for money

 

[ar inj]

He had a press against Miami where the DESIGN was Cuffe as rim protector last line of defense dude. That disqualifies him from coaching for money

Yesterday too if you are counting.

 

[IthacaMatt]

With Coach Autry at the helm, massive pre, intra and post season drama as well. I would emphatically like to know why coach Boeheim's discussion with Steve Infanti and Pauly is not being discussed giving insight on this season, how many we missed in the portal, massive turnover and how we missed on players because we did not spend enough money. If he had Dakota, Malik and retention of Quadir with the portal class we have in my opinion that we would be talking about how coach Adrian Autry was a tremendous acquisition for the program concerning continuity. It did not happen for the above reasons. I have yet to see this discussion. I cannot Judge him fairly at this point, I simply cannot. JJ and EL are the only ACC level starters we have at this point. Good off the bench players old cuse with great normal development down the road. We did not have the time for that to occur...

That would have been a better roster, for certain. But there are so many other problems.
What is the rotation among Eddie, Maliq, Donnie, McLeod, Jyare and Petar for basically 2.5 positions?

 

[GHLF]

imagine if we had Cooper Flagg!!!

I was talking realistic Cuse expectations, you were not. We literally have had 3-5 Cooper Flagg level players since before my birth, 40 plus years.

 

[GHLF]

That would have been a better roster, for certain. But there are so many other problems.
What is the rotation among Eddie, Maliq, Donnie, McLeod, Jyare and Petar for basically 2.5 positions?

Wow, great problem to have. Serious depth, Petar, Elijah would not sniff the floor, the rest bench players with stat removal for defensive lapses. Donnie/Jyare/JC 6-8 off the bench, hyper productive minutes. Imagine our practice quality. Would be like the old days with undeniable development. We trust for this and I think this is very realistic

 

[GHLF]

Wow, great problem to have. Serious depth, Petar, Elijah would not sniff the floor, the rest bench players with stat removal for defensive lapses. Donnie/Jyare/JC 6-8 off the bench, hyper productive minutes. Imagine our practice quality. Would be like the old days with undeniable development. We trust for this and I think this is very realistic

Quadir would play the 3/2/1. That is over

 

[GHLF]

He had a press against Miami where the DESIGN was Cuffe as rim protector last line of defense dude. That disqualifies him from coaching for money

????

 

[IthacaMatt]

Wow, great problem to have. Serious depth, Petar, Elijah would not sniff the floor, the rest bench players with stat removal for defensive lapses. Donnie/Jyare/JC 6-8 off the bench, hyper productive minutes. Imagine our practice quality. Would be like the old days with undeniable development. We trust for this and I think this is very realistic

You can't not play young players like Moore and Majstorovic, or they'll leave.

 

[MamesJungro]

Sometime around 2001, JB last truly adapted his coaching techniques, as well as his style of managing the program. He was able to keep up quite a while because he's a certifiable basketball genius. But he completely ignored things like nutrition, property dedication to S&C, analytics, and other things that were giving rival programs an edge. Even recruiting effort was slipping by the end.

With that in mind, everything in the program needed modernization and invigoration. By all these measures, Red is doing it right. His in game coaching and game planning feels weak, but I really don't know how long the normal learning curve is, where coaching meets execution (or in this case fails to meet it) or lack of talent makes him look bad.

NFL QBs tend to look terrified and shell shocked for a few seasons before really showing their talent... Maybe Red is going to suddenly have the game "slow down for him" as a head coach soon?

Alex Kline, dedicated nutrition staff, modern S&C techniques, excellent recruiting assistants, and a former Head Coach as an assistant on the bench are all supposed to make this process easier on the Head Coach. Hopefully, Red turns the corner (or the coaching change is made) quickly.

This is insane. Red is 52 years old and makes 2m per year. Go learn how to coach at a D3 school

 

[GHLF]

You can't not play young players like Moore and Majstorovic, or they'll leave.

Prob, crazy time I know.

 

[STEVEHOLT]

Yesterday too if you are counting.

I didn’t watch that one. I just came here to get the gist .

 

[AZOrange]

You can't not play young players like Moore and Majstorovic, or they'll leave.

At least one will be leaving anyway

 

[IthacaMatt]

At least one will be leaving anyway

Yeah, Moore has been handled poorly. So has Cuffe. So has McLeod. So was Freeman.

 

[Scooch]

Sometime around 2001, JB last truly adapted his coaching techniques, as well as his style of managing the program. He was able to keep up quite a while because he's a certifiable basketball genius. But he completely ignored things like nutrition, property dedication to S&C, analytics, and other things that were giving rival programs an edge. Even recruiting effort was slipping by the end.

With that in mind, everything in the program needed modernization and invigoration. By all these measures, Red is doing it right. His in game coaching and game planning feels weak, but I really don't know how long the normal learning curve is, where coaching meets execution (or in this case fails to meet it) or lack of talent makes him look bad.

NFL QBs tend to look terrified and shell shocked for a few seasons before really showing their talent... Maybe Red is going to suddenly have the game "slow down for him" as a head coach soon?

Alex Kline, dedicated nutrition staff, modern S&C techniques, excellent recruiting assistants, and a former Head Coach as an assistant on the bench are all supposed to make this process easier on the Head Coach. Hopefully, Red turns the corner (or the coaching change is made) quickly.

Insightful post, thanks!

My concern, among many, is that this "modernization" is taking wayyyy too long and seems to be incredibly reactive.

We're almost 2 full years into Autry's tenure, and I fail to see any tangible results on the nutrition or S&C front.

We all know that he bungled NIL badly. Didn't press for money from the start and vastly underestimated the war chest he'd need to be successful. The Jesse Edwards saga should have been the wake up call there, and that was a year before we got beat out for targets this past summer.

We'll see how Kline does as GM starting in about 6 weeks. All the analytics in the world won't matter if we don't acquire high-end talent in the portal. If we're fishing in low major waters again, that's bad, and I don't want to hear any more "diamond in the rough" rationalizations.

I get that Autry did a road show and said all the right things. I was really hopeful after hearing reports from that. But it's hard to ignore just how badly this staff has missed on almost everything over the past year.

 

[Niastri]

Insightful post, thanks!

My concern, among many, is that this "modernization" is taking wayyyy too long and seems to be incredibly reactive.

We're almost 2 full years into Autry's tenure, and I fail to see any tangible results on the nutrition or S&C front.

We all know that he bungled NIL badly. Didn't press for money from the start and vastly underestimated the war chest he'd need to be successful. The Jesse Edwards saga should have been the wake up call there, and that was a year before we got beat out for targets this past summer.

We'll see how Kline does as GM starting in about 6 weeks. All the analytics in the world won't matter if we don't acquire high-end talent in the portal. If we're fishing in low major waters again, that's bad, and I don't want to hear any more "diamond in the rough" rationalizations.

I get that Autry did a road show and said all the right things. I was really hopeful after hearing reports from that. But it's hard to ignore just how badly this staff has missed on almost everything over the past year.

I would argue their misses were entirely in portal recruiting.

But it was a major failure. They just didn't get the guys they wanted. Lampkin was a very good pickup, but he needed to be the second best player in the class. Getting one of the three best point guards in the class was much more important to the team's success than getting Lampkin.

If money was an issue, throwing all of Lampkin's money at (for instance) Richmond would have made more sense. Getting a live body low major center who could catch alley oops and block shots, along with Richmond, and this team is way better.

But maybe they knew McLeod wasn't going to play, and they thought Westry was the guy.

Without knowing what the staff thought they knew last spring, we can't retrace their roster building decision making.

We will see how much the analytics team makes a difference this upcoming year. We will also see if our NIL money has improved to a more competitive position.

In spite of everything, a healthy roster with McLeod, Westry and Freeman and an effective Bell would look entirely different going down the stretch. Carlos, Davis and Taylor were not supposed to be starters or even critical rotation pieces. But when you have enough injuries, your depth becomes your starters.

Edit: even Dakota Leffew has a 4.7 BPM off the bench for Georgia. Carlos, as mostly a starter, has a -1.7 BPM. Huge fail in recruiting, one way or the other.