SU couldn't even inbound the ball cleanly against UNC last night in the waning moments of regulation and a one-point lead. I get that SU never gets any action going to the basket in their out of bounds sets, but to not even be able to inbound the ball? Just godawful.
Boeheim's line about "having a bad year" is nonsense. As we know, SU has been mediocre for a long time now, are in the midst of a castrophic season filled with nepotism (though Buddy is a pretty solid player and Jimmy is a legit D1 player; he just shouldn't be playing 37 minutes a night for a team in the ACC), and - and this is key - there's no hope for a better future. I mean, what about SU hoops excites Orange fans for 2022-23 right now? Here's who might be returning:
Ajak - 6'10" So.
Anselem - 6'10" So.
Edwards - 6'11" Jr.
Girard - 6'1" Jr.
Torrence - 6'3" Jr.
Williams - 6'8" Fr.
That's IF Williams sticks around, and IF Edwards doesn't declare for the NBA - which he'd be crazy to do, but lots of SU guys declare way too soon so it wouldn't shock me. Ajak doesn't help much at all. Anselem is fine as a backup. Edwards is pretty good. Torrence is ok as a point guard. Girard is decent as a shooting guard, but he's too small to play the 2, and not a good enough ball handler to play the 1. He's an undersized shooting guard who provides no defense at the top of the zone. Williams has terrific athletic ability but has done nothing this year. Still, he at least has potential.
Swider and Buddy both have another year of eligibility thanks to Covid, so obviously they'd help if they stayed. But then that would mean essentially running out the same lineup that is a .500 team this year. So who knows if that's even a good thing.
Coming in next year are two 4-star recruits: Chris Bunch (6'7") and Justin Taylor (6'6"). Both could make an impact. Or neither could make an impact. They also have a few 3-star recruits, and who knows with them.
SU just doesn't have anything to get the heart racing. Nothing REALLY to look forward to next year. I mean, maybe, if everything breaks right, they get 22 wins and a 10 seed in the NCAA tournament. Maybe. I guess that qualifies as a successful season for Syracuse these days.
UGH.