I've started the last few Cuse hoops threads, and while last year wasn't so hot...hey, we made the final four a few times during my run, so fuck it. Here goes nothing.
Losing Taurean Thompson at the last minute to Seton Hall was a major blow and likely dooms this year to a rebuilding year. The team will feature Tyus Battle, Frank Howard, and a whole lot of inexperience. The only other player on the roster with on-court experience for Syracuse is Paschal Chukwu, who played 108 minutes played for Syracuse. He spent much of last year temporarily blind in one eye. But you know the old saying, "In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man in the starting center."
This could be a year in which Boeheim plays his whole bench. Or it could be another year like last year in which he struggles to find a line-up, then sticks to a 6- or 7-man rotation. My hunch is it will be the latter with the rotation looking something like this:
Starters:
G - Frank Howard
G - Tyus Battle (taking something like 25 shots a game)
G - Geno Thorpe
F - Oshae Brissett
C - Paschal Chukwu
Bench (Solid contributors):
F - Matthew Moyer
F/C - Bourama Sidibe
Significantly fewer minutes:
G - Howard Washington
F- Marek Dolezaj
On the bright side, next year's recruiting class already offers hope with Darius Bazley, Jalen Carey, and Buddy Boeheim already signed. With any luck, they'll be joined by a significant group of 2nd year players ready to contribute to the next great Syracuse team. In the meantime...hey, my expectations are obviously low. Maybe this team will find a way to steal some games and make it interesting.
Losing Taurean Thompson at the last minute to Seton Hall was a major blow and likely dooms this year to a rebuilding year. The team will feature Tyus Battle, Frank Howard, and a whole lot of inexperience. The only other player on the roster with on-court experience for Syracuse is Paschal Chukwu, who played 108 minutes played for Syracuse. He spent much of last year temporarily blind in one eye. But you know the old saying, "In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man in the starting center."
This could be a year in which Boeheim plays his whole bench. Or it could be another year like last year in which he struggles to find a line-up, then sticks to a 6- or 7-man rotation. My hunch is it will be the latter with the rotation looking something like this:
Starters:
G - Frank Howard
G - Tyus Battle (taking something like 25 shots a game)
G - Geno Thorpe
F - Oshae Brissett
C - Paschal Chukwu
Bench (Solid contributors):
F - Matthew Moyer
F/C - Bourama Sidibe
Significantly fewer minutes:
G - Howard Washington
F- Marek Dolezaj
On the bright side, next year's recruiting class already offers hope with Darius Bazley, Jalen Carey, and Buddy Boeheim already signed. With any luck, they'll be joined by a significant group of 2nd year players ready to contribute to the next great Syracuse team. In the meantime...hey, my expectations are obviously low. Maybe this team will find a way to steal some games and make it interesting.