What might have been

[SWC75]

On last night’s Jim Boeheim Show they discusses players leaving early and the impact it had had on SU. It prompted me to engage in a common fantasy: what if everyone had stayed here until they graduated. I fully realize three things: (1) every school has the same problem and could do this, too and (2) if some players have stayed other players might have gone elsewhere. (3) You can only have 13 scholarship players and JB prefers about 10. But it’s still fun to look at. I’ll just do the teams from this decade, beginning with 2009-10

2009-10

CENTERS
Rick Jackson
Arinze Onuaku
Sean Williams

FORWARDS
Paul Harris
Wes Johnson
Kris Joseph
James Southerland

GUARDS
Eric Devendorf
Johnny Flynn
Scoop Jardine
Mookie Jones
Andy Rautins
Brandon Triche

Comment: The center spot would have bene the same: Onuaku and Jackson. Paul Harris would have had a reduced role at best Southerland wasn’t ready so it would have been Johnson and Joseph as forwards. Flynn and Devo would have been the backcourt- very good offensively but not so good defensively. Jardine and Triche were very good that year. The guy we really would have missed was Andy Rautins, the best guy we’ve ever had at the front of the zone and deadeye coming off a screen. He would have gotten lost in the shuffle. I think it could be argued that we wouldn’t have bene quite as good as we were because he would have played a lot less.

2010-11

CENTERS
Rick Jackson
Baye Moussa Keita
Fab Melo
Da'Shonte Riley
Sean Williams

FORWARDS
C. J. Fair
Wes Johnson
Kris Joseph
James Southerland

GUARDS
Johnny Flynn
Scoop Jardine
Mookie Jones
Brandon Triche
Dion Waiters

Comments: Rich Jackson, who also played power forward would have been the center: Johnson and Joseph would have been the forwards. Johnson would have made a huge difference. Flynn would still have been at the point. He was better than Jardine but not by a lot. Waiters had a poor first year and I think Triche would have seen more time at the ‘2’ than anyone. It would have been a better team than the 27-8 unit we had.

2011-12

CENTERS
Rakeem Christmas
Baye Moussa Keita
Fab Melo
Da'Shonte Riley

FORWARDS
C. J. Fair
Kris Joseph
James Southerland

GUARDS
Michael Carter- Williams
Scoop Jardine
Mookie Jones
Brandon Triche
Dion Waiters

Comments: No real changes here and none needed: Melo backed by Christmas and Keita; Fair, Joseph and Southerland at forward would have been the same and we would have had the Jardine/ Triche/ Waiters troika and MCW screaming to get in. Those guys went 34-3, 31-1 with Melo in the line-up.

2012-13

CENTERS
Rakeem Christmas
DaJuan Coleman
Baye Moussa Keita
Fab Melo
Da'Shonte Riley

FORWARDS
C. J. Fair
Jerami Grant
James Southerland

GUARDS
Michael Carter- Williams
Trevor Cooney
Mookie Jones
Brandon Triche
Dion Waiters

Comments: Having Melo for a third and fourth year is the height of fantasy but I’ll always wonder what he could have become, at least at this level. Christmas and Keita were rock-ribbed on defense that year. I felt they were the real keys to our Final Four run that year. I also wonder what waiters would have become if he’d played it out here. MCW would have been the point guard. I think Triche’s time might have faded a bit. I would like to have played that Final Four with Melo and Waiters.

2013-14

CENTERS
Rakeem Christmas
DaJuan Coleman
Fab Melo
Baye Moussa Keita

FORWARDS
C. J. Fair
Michael Gbinije
Jerami Grant
B. J. Johnson
Tyler Roberson

GUARDS
Michael Carter- Williams
Trevor Cooney
Tyler Ennis
Ron Patterson
Dion Waiters

Comments: We started 25-0 without Melo and Waiters. MCW would still have been the point guard with Ennis an apprentice. I think we would have played faster and scored better, which was the problem in the late season slump.

2014-15

CENTERS
Rakeem Christmas
(DaJuan Coleman sat out due to his injuries)
Chinoso Obokoh

FORWARDS
Michael Gbinije
Jerami Grant
B. J. Johnson
Chris McCullough (injured after 16 games)
Tyler Roberson

GUARDS
Michael Carter- Williams
Trevor Cooney
Tyler Ennis
Kaleb Joseph
Ron Patterson

Comments: This was the team with the glass ceiling. We could have pecked away at it more than we did with MCW and Jerami Grant.

2015-16

CENTERS
DaJuan Coleman
Chinoso Obokoh

FORWARDS
Jerami Grant
B. J. Johnson
Tyler Lydon
Chris McCullough
Malachi Richardson
Tyler Roberson

GUARDS
Trevor Cooney
Tyler Ennis
Michael Gbinije
Franklin Howard
Kaleb Joseph
Ron Patterson

Comments: With Grant and McCullough, how much would Tyler Lydon have played? He or McCullough probably would have been the center. We’d have seen less of Richardson. Would Ennis have bene any better as a junior than he was as a freshman? Maybe he didn’t have to be.

2016-17

CENTERS
Paschal Chukwu (injured)
DaJuan Coleman
Chinoso Obokoh

FORWARDS
B. J. Johnson
Tyler Lydon
Chris McCullough
Matthew Moyer
Malachi Richardson
Tyler Roberson
Taurean Thompson
Andrew White

GUARDS
Tyus Battle
Tyler Ennis
John Gillon
Franklin Howard
Kaleb Joseph
Ron Patterson

Comments: Center would have been McCullough or Lydon. How good would McCullough have been by now? Would Richardson have matured into a star? Ennis would have bene the point guard we need. Gillon and white wouldn’t be here at all. I’d have liked to have taken on North Carolina with this team. St. John’s, too.

 

[two3zone]

On last night’s Jim Boeheim Show they discusses players leaving early and the impact it had had on SU. It prompted me to engage in a common fantasy: what if everyone had stayed here until they graduated. I fully realize three things: (1) every school has the same problem and could do this, too and (2) if some players have stayed other players might have gone elsewhere. (3) You can only have 13 scholarship players and JB prefers about 10. But it’s still fun to look at. I’ll just do the teams from this decade, beginning with 2009-10


2016-17

CENTERS
Paschal Chukwu (injured)
DaJuan Coleman
Chinoso Obokoh

FORWARDS
B. J. Johnson
Tyler Lydon
Chris McCullough
Matthew Moyer
Malachi Richardson
Tyler Roberson
Taurean Thompson
Andrew White

GUARDS
Tyus Battle
Tyler Ennis
John Gillon
Franklin Howard
Kaleb Joseph
Ron Patterson

Comments: Center would have been McCullough or Lydon. How good would McCullough have been by now? Would Richardson have matured into a star? Ennis would have bene the point guard we need. Gillon and white wouldn’t be here at all. I’d have liked to have taken on North Carolina with this team. St. John’s, too.

This team would have been stomped by every other previous team listed. The only playable guys on this squad are Ennis, Battle, Roberson (maybe), Richardson, McCullough, and Lydon.

We'd still only go 6 deep.

If that doesn't tell us how bad recruiting has been I don't know what will.

 

[SWC75]

This team would have been stomped by every other previous team listed. The only playable guys on this squad are Ennis, Battle, Roberson (maybe), Richardson, McCullough, and Lydon.

We'd still only go 6 deep.

If that doesn't tell us how bad recruiting has been I don't know what will.

That would be a terrific line-up. So would the others.

 

[AlaskaSU]

Not to mention the current NBA starters that hailed from Duke and Kentucky?

 

[two3zone]

That would be a terrific line-up. So would the others.

It would be a terrific 6 man lineup.

Even the entire body of work its not even close to the previous years.