OrangeHoops Hall of Fame 2024

In 2007, OrangeHoops inducted its charter class into the OrangeHoops Hall of Fame: Dave Bing, Derrick Coleman, Sherman Douglas, Vic Hanson, and Pearl Washington. The next several years saw the addition of Billy Owens (2008), Billy Gabor (2009), Lawrence Moten (2010), Louis Orr (2011), Roosevelt Bouie (2011)  John Wallace (2012),  Rony Seikaly (2013), Vinnie Cohen (2014), Etan Thomas (2015), Joe Schwarzer (2016), Lew Andreas (2017), Carmelo Anthony (2018), Stephen Thompson (2019), Hakim Warrick (2020), Gerry McNamara (2021), and Rudy Hackett (2022).  So the list now stands at 22. Another year has passed, and now it is time for the 2024 inductee.

I established my rules for the OrangeHoops Hall of Fame back in 2007 and you can catch up on them here. 2024 does have eight new eligible candidates (using the fifteen year rule):  Eric Devendorf, Kevin Drew, Jonny Flynn, Paul Harris, Kristof Ongenaet, Jake Presutti, Justin Thomas, and Sean  Williams.

Eric Devendorf was a fiery trash talking guard who could aggressively take the ball to the hoop or pull up for a three pointer. Devo was a four year starter who ended up with 1,680 career points.

Kevin Drew was a walk on guard his freshman year; he never played in a game.  He was a star lacrosse player for four seasons earning Big East First Team honors his senior year.

Jonny Flynn was a speedy point guard who led the Orange offense for two seasons.  Flynn was a McDonalds High School All-American.  He would play in the NBA for three seasons.

 

Paul Harris was an explosive muscular forward who was terrific on the offensive boards.  He would play for the Orange for three seasons.

Kris Ongenaet was a defensive minded forward for the Orange for two seasons. He was a solid rebounder known for his hustling play, and was decent passing the ball.

Jake Presutti was a walk-on guard for four seasons.   He would play 30 games and score 11 points.

Justin Thomas was a walk-on guard for three seasons. He would play 23 games and score 12 points.  Thomas memorably played in the last overtime period of the six overtime win against UConn, as Syracuse had no scholarship players remaining due to fouls.

Sean Williams was a lanky 6'11" center who came to Syracuse as a "project". He played in 16 games in two seasons before transferring.

Flynn and Devendorf would both crack my list of top 10 candidates.

I think this year’s viable top 10 candidates come down to the following, listed chronologically: Lew Castle, Dennis DuVal, Jimmy Lee, Danny Schayes, Leo Rautins, Dave Johnson, Jason Hart, Preston Shumpert, Eric Devendorf, and Jonny Flynn.

Castle was a two time All-American at Syracuse, and was captain and leading scorer of Syracuse’s only undefeated team, the 1913-1914 squad that went 12-0.

DuVal was a flashy point guard for Syracuse in the early 70s.  When he graduated from Syracuse he was only second to Dave Bing in career points scored.  He was a three year started and averaged 18.6 ppg.  DuVal was a third team All-American his senior year

Lee was a clutch shooter with terrific perimeter range, and outstanding free throw shooting ability. He was able to use his shooting ability to set himself up as a solid passer. Lee's 18 foot jumper with five seconds remaining led the Orangemen to beat heavily favored North Carolina, as the Orangemen eventually moved on to their first NCAA Final Four. Lee would end up making the All-Tournament team for his outstanding performances.

Schayes was a skilled center with a good shooting touch, and solid overall basketball skills. He unfortunately sat behind the legendary Roosevelt Bouie his first three seasons, but he led the Orange his senior year in scoring and rebounding, earning an All Big East First Team selection.  

Rautins was a terrific ball-handling forward with a nice shooting touch, solid rebounding and scoring skills. He is most well-known for his game winning tip in basket to win the Big East Championship in triple overtime against Villanova in 1981.  Rautins also recorded two triple-doubles in Big East action.

Johnson was a 6'5" swingman during the heights of Syracuse's program.  He was a defensive replacement his freshman and sophomore year, and would development into one of the Orange's primary offensive threats his junior and senior year. Johnson would earn All Big East First Team his senior year.

Hart was a speedy defensive point guard, and a four year starter.  He was a decent ball handler, and finished his career as the number two assist man all time at Syracuse. He was much better on the defensive end, and would finish as SU's all-time leader in steals.  Hart would have a 9 year career in the NBA, mostly as a backup guard.

Shumpert was one of the best three point shooters in Syracuse history, with terrific range.  He was a streaky shooter and carried the Orangemen to many victories, seven times in his career scoring 30+ points in a game.  He would be named to the Big East First Team both his junior and senior seasons, averaging 20.7 points per game his senior year.  He was not a strong defensive player, and there were questions about his temperament, particularly related to issues with DeShaun Williams.  Shumpert is currently the 8^th all time leading scorer at SU.

All are worthy players, and tough selections to make.  I designed my selection rules to make it tough; the Hall of Fame should be the 'best of the best', and I would rather have a line of worthy players outside the Hall of Fame, than cheapen it by having lessor players included.

Ten very good candidates, and a couple of those players are among my all-time personal favorites.  The 2024 inductee is Jonny Flynn.

Flynn was a speedy guard with a great ability to drive to the basket as well as pull up for a three pointer.  He was a terrific passer and came to Syracuse heralded as a McDonald's All American.

Flynn would win the Big East Rookie of the Year his freshman season, and earned Big East 2nd Team honors his sophomore year.

He would score a career high 35 points in a loss to Providence.  Flynn was pivotal in the memorable six overtime win against UConn with a game high 34 points.  He played 67 of the game's 70 minutes, shot 16-16 from the free throw line, had 11 assists and 6 steals.

Flynn would finish his Syracuse career with 1,211 points on 16.6 ppg, along with 439 assists at 6.0 apg.  

Flynn was the #6 overall pick in the 2009 NBA draft selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves.  He averaged 13.5 ppg his rookie season before injuries sidelined him. He would play 3 seasons in the NBA before playing internationally in Australia and Italy.

Five Historically Interesting Games for the Orange

The following are summaries from five Syracuse basketball games that were memorable for various reasons.

Syracuse 57, Fordham 22 January 14, 1939

Coach Lew Andreas always played a deep bench, but he went to the extreme on this day. Syracuse led 49-21 with about 8 minutes left in the game.  Andreas, who was also the athletic director, started liberally substituting players for the Orangemen.  In the end, 21 different Syracuse athletes played for the Orangemen that day.

Wilmeth Sidat-Singh led all scorers that day with 17 points. Bobby Stewart was second with 13.

http://orangehoops.org/Box%20Scores/19390114.htm

 

Syracuse 106, Oswego State Teachers College 25 December 8, 1945

Syracuse scored 100+ points in a game for the first time, setting a school record scoring margin of 81 points.  Forward Billy Gabor would set a then-school record of 36 points with 15 field goals and 6 free throws.  15 Orangemen would play with 14 of them scoring.

http://orangehoops.org/Box%20Scores/19451208.htm

 

Syracuse 64, Temple 47 February 9, 1952

Frank Reddout set a school record with 34 rebounds against the Owls, including 20 in the first half. Reddout would also lead all scorers with 18 points.  The Orangemen held Temple to 4 of 35 field goal shooting in the first half.

http://orangehoops.org/Box%20Scores/19520209.htm

 

Syracuse 144, Siena 92 January 17, 1979

The Orangemen set a school record scoring 144 points in a victory of Siena.   The Orangemen led 69-38 at the half and scored a school record 75 points in the second half.  8 Orangemen scored in double figures with reserve guard Hal Cohen leading the way with 25 points.   The Orangemen made 61% of their field goals, and held Siena to 41%.  Syracuse had 36 assists on  55 field goals.

http://orangehoops.org/Box%20Scores/19790117.htm

 

Syracuse 127, UConn 117 March 12^th, 2009

This game is still fresh to most of us, though it occurred 14+ years ago.  #18 ranked Orange played the #3 ranked Huskies in the quarter finals of the Big East tournament.  Syracuse thought they won a classic game in regulation when Eric Devendorf hit a half court shot at the buzzer.  Replays showed however that the ball was still on his fingertips as time expired. 

What happened next was a historical 6-overtime game.  The Orange would never lead in overtime until the sixth period.  Syracuse’s Jonny Flynn played 67 of the total 70 minutes with 34 points, 11 assists, and 6 steals. Paul Harris lead both teams with 22 rebounds.

Four Orange players would foul out as well as four Huskies, before the Orange won 127-117.

http://orangehoops.org/Box%20Scores/20090312.htm

 

Freshmen at the Point

Syracuse University and Coach Jim Boeheim have been fortunate to often be able to start an experienced point guard for the Orange.  In his first 37 seasons on the Hill, Boeheim has only started a freshman point guard seven seasons.  Tyler Ennis, for 2013-2014, will be the eighth journey with freshman running the team.

The first freshman point guard for Boeheim was unquestionably the most gifted freshman point guard.  Pearl Washington stepped onto Syracuse's campus in 1983, and electrified the crowds with his playground style of basketball.  The Pearl's freshman campaign was a fantastic individual highlight reel, including his game winning half court short to beat Boston College, and his outstanding Big East Tournament effort, where he scored 30 points in the semi-finals against Villanova, and 27 in a memorable Syracuse-Georgetown finals, a game the Orangemen would lose in overtime.  

Syracuse would go 23-9 that season, including 12-4 in the Big East, largely behind the efforts of Washington and sophomore Rafael Addison.  The Pearl would average 14.4 ppg and 6.2 assists. He was also very turnover prone with 3.5 per game, and also foul prone at 3.1 per game. The Pearl would log 34 minutes a game, and did have the luxury of Gene Waldron in the backcourt.  Waldron had been Syracuse's starting point guard the previous two seasons, and provided some steady play.

The next freshman to start at point guard for Syracuse was something of a surprise.  Syracuse had a team loaded with experienced talent for the 1989-1990, but had just lost superstar Sherman Douglas to graduation the previous season.  Boeheim wanted to get all his talent on the court to start the game and moved high flying senior Stephen Thompson to the point, playing sophomore guard Dave Johnson at shooting guard, along with a monster front line of Billy Owens, Derrick Coleman and LeRon Ellis.  

The move of Thompson to the point hurt the team for two reasons. First, Thompson was not a natural point guard, and was uncomfortable in the position. He was not proficient at running the offense.  Second, Thompson was the best finisher on the team, loved playing near and high above the rim, something he could not do from the point guard position.  So after fifteen games into the season, Boeheim inserted unheralded freshman Michael Edwards into the starting lineup.  

Edwards would play the point competently, which was all the team was asking of him.  Syracuse would go 26-7, and win the Big East Regular season championship.  Edwards would score 6.3 points per game and have 5.0 assists per game.

Adrian 'Red' Autry, was highly touted out of high school, and would immediately replace Edwards at the point in the starting lineup the next season (1990-1991); Edwards would still start but moved to the shooting guard position.  Autry was a big guard at 6'4", and was able to run the offense very well.  Syracuse would have a very successful season going 26-6, and 12-4 in the Big East winning the Big East regular season championship.  Billy Owens was the big story on the team, and most of the plays went through Owens one way or another, taking some of the burden off of Autry.

Unfortunately the Orangemen's post season did not go well, as they were one and done in the Big East Tournament and NCAA with shocking losses to Villanova and Richmond.  Autry finished the season with 9.7 ppg and 5.3 apg.  Like the Pearl, he was turnover and foul prone, with 3.6 and 3.4 averages respectively.  

It would be another six seasons until a freshman ran the Syracuse offense. In 1996-1997 highly heralded Jason Hart started for the Orangemen.  It was a very experienced team with seniors Jason Cipolla and Otis Hill, and juniors Marius Janulis and Todd Burgan all starting.  The team was coming off of a surprising Final Four season, and there were some reasonable expectations for a strong season. The Orangemen would start the year ranked 13th in the country in the AP polls.

However, by mid season, the team had dropped out of the polls with four losses by December 14th.  The loss of the talent and veteran leadership from John Wallace and Lazarus Sims from the previous season was clearly felt. Hart was a solid defensive guard, but tended to make poor shot decisions and game play decisions on offense.  He would shoot only 37.9% from the floor, and average 3.0 turnovers a game.  The Orange had no other point guard to really help him out, so Hart played about 35 minutes each game.  He did average 9.6 ppg and 5.8 apg, decent numbers for a freshman.  

The Orangemen would finish 19-13, and would lose in the first round of the NIT Tournament.

The next time a freshman point guard started for Syracuse, the end result would be the first NCAA National Championship for the Orange.  In 2002-2003, red-shirted freshman Billy Edelin was slated to be the starting point guard; however, NCAA violations from activity in another basketball league prevented Edelin from playing in the first 12 games of the season.  So Boeheim turned to another freshman, Gerry McNamara, and made him the point guard.

The results were far better than anyone could have expected. McNamara played the point position well, and the team had outstanding ball movement.  Superstar freshman Carmelo Anthony had a lot to do with that, as he drew a lot of defensive attention; but Anthony wasn't the only star on the team, and players knew their roles.  McNamara would play a very strong game at point guard, and was excellent at the inside/outside game with Anthony and Hakim Warrick.  McNamara would get the ball to one of those big men, and if defenses collapsed too much, they would kick it back out to McNamara who would drain the three point shot. 

McNamara would remain the starting point guard for the whole season, even after Edelin returned, and would play 35.2 minutes per game.  Once Edelin returned, McNamara would get some opportunities to play the shooting guard, but still would log more time at the point. It wasn't until the championship game that Edelin saw more time at the point than McNamara.  Syracuse would of course finish the year 30-5, 13-3 in the Big East, and would win the National Championship. In that game, McNamara would hit six three point shots in the first half to help the Orange get a large early lead.  

McNamara would finish the year with 13.3 ppg, and 4.4 apg.  He was good at not turning the ball over with only 2.4 turnovers a game, and while not a great defender, he was very adept at stepping into the passing lanes for a quick steal, averaging 2.2 steals a game.  

Jonny Flynn would be the next freshman to run the Orange, for the 2007-2008 season. Flynn was electrifying, a guard with great quickness and some flair in his play.  He was a good playmaker, but the team struggled.  A preseason injury took sharpshooting junior Andy Rautins out for the year, and midway through the season his classmate Eric Devendorf would tear his ACL and miss the remainder of the season.  Syracuse would end up with a lot of defensive and rebounding talent on the team, but not many polished offensive players.  Freshman Donte' Greene was the best offensive weapon, and the game tended to focus the offense on him, and unfortunately it often ended with him.  The lack of depth due to injuries forced three starters, including Flynn, to play 35+ minutes a game.

The Orange would finish a disappointing 21-14 that year, including 9-9 in the Big East.  Flynn would have an impressive freshman campaign with 15.7 ppg and 5.3 assists, and would be the Co-Rookie of the Year in the Big East.

The last freshman to start at the point for Syracuse was Brandon Triche in 2009-2010.  This may have been the best all around team in Syracuse history, with a devastating post season injury shortening their run.  Syracuse started the season unranked, and by March 2nd, 2010, they would be the #1 ranked team in the country.  They would enter the NCAA tournament as a #1 seed, however, they lost center Arinze Onuaku to a knee injury in the Big East Tournament, and the hurt them in a close lost to Butler in the tournament.

Triche played well at point guard all season.  He had the luxury of being on a veteran team, and having a veteran back up point guard to support him in Scoop Jardine, a sophomore in his third year at Syracuse.  Perhaps the biggest advantage was most of the offense flowed through senior Andy Rautins, the teams top three point shooter and top assist man.  

Triche would spend a lot of time at the shooting guard position, along with the point guard position, as Boeheim rotated Triche, Jardine and Rautins as needed.  Triche was steady, but Jardine usually played the point at the crunch minutes at the end of the game.  

Triche would finish the year with 8.1 ppg, and 2.8 apg.  He shot an excellent 40% from three point range, often as the luxury of defenses considering him the fifth best scoring option on the floor. Triche took advantage of those opportunities.

Tyler Ennis will be the eighth freshman point guard, and has no true backup.  There will be a lot of minutes the 6'2" guard will have to play. He will be blessed with an outstanding senior in C.J. Fair who has a great inside/outside game, and several promising players who could provide strong offensive support, such as Trevor Cooney and Jerami Grant.  Ennis will have his work cut out for him; the preseason activity in Canada looked very promising, and if the Syracuse team can develop so that it can rely on Ennis to run the offense, and not have to provide it, then it could be an excellent freshman year for him, and an excellent season for the Orange.

Let's sit back and see what happens. Let's go Orange!

Flynn Goes Sixth in NBA Draft

Congratulations to Jonny Flynn, who became the 52nd Syracuse Orange basketball player to be drafted by the NBA. Flynn was the 6th overall player taken tonight when the Minnesota Timberwolves took him in the first round.

Flynn is the highest drafted player from Syracuse since Carmelo Anthony was drafted as the third overall player in the 2003 NBA Draft. Derrick Coleman holds the distinction of being the only Orangeman drafted with the top pick of the draft, when the New Jersey Nets took him in 2003. Flynn is the 15th Orangeman taken in the first round of the draft.

Flynn also earns the distinction of being the second highest drafted guard in Syracuse history. Dave Bing went to Detroit with the second overall pick in 1966.

Dave Bing 2nd (1966)
Pearl Washington 13th (1986)
Jack Kiley 13th (1951)
Sherman Douglas 28th (1989)
Dennis Duval 30th (1974)
Lawrence Moten 36th (1995)
Jason Hart 49th (2000)
Erich Santifer 55th (1983)
Jimmy Lee 79th (1975)
Greg Kohls 99th (1972)
Eddie Moss 50th (1981)
Marty Headd 198th (1981)

There’s some notable names on that list, especially Washington and Douglas. Of course, success in college does not necessarily translate to success in the NBA, and draft picks often reflect what NBA coaches think of that potential, but still it is very high accolade for Flynn to be sixth overall.

Despite the fact that Syracuse had some ‘down’ years in the mid 2000s, the NBA draft still liked the Orange. This decade saw the following:

Etan Thomas 12th (2000)
Jason Hart 49th (2000)
Damone Brown 44th (2001)
Carmelo Anthony 3rd (2003)
Hakim Warrick 19th (2005)
Demetris Nichols 53rd (2007)
Donte’ Green 28th (2008
Jonny Flynn 6th (2009)

The number of players drafted from 2000-2009 may not jump out at you, but look at the number of Syracuse players drafted in the first two rounds, for each decade:

1950s – 1 player
1960s – 1 player
1970s – 3 players
1980s – 8 players
1990s – 7 players
2000s – 8 players

If we narrow that to just the first round:
1950s – None
1960s – 1 player
1970s – 1 player
1980s – 4 players
1990s – 5 players
2000s – 4 players

So the 2000s are looking very kindly, from an historical perspective to the Orange who have been drafted.

Now, if we look at the period of 1986-1996, what are really the ‘glory days’ of the Boeheim era, the numbers do change a little bit. There were 11 players drafted in the first two rounds during that period, including seven in the first round, and Coleman as the number one pick overall. Other college teams can boast bigger numbers (Duke once had five first round picks in one year), but from an Orange perspective that was the best era.

But back to Flynn. Congratulations, and best of luck in the NBA.

Goodbye to a Big Threesome

Syracuse finished the season strong, and with the entire starting squad slated to return along with most of the bench and some talented incoming freshman, Syracuse was looking very good for the 2009-2010 season. Some experts had Syracuse projected as a top 5 team for next season. That quickly changed as the weeks following the season rolled by as the three top scoring players and starters Jonny Flynn, Eric Devendorf and Paul Harris all declared themselves eligible for the NBA draft. Syracuse went from a league favorite to a possible rebuilding season.

I don’t harbor any of the three players ill will and wish them the best of luck in the professional endeavors. Flynn’s value was probably never going to be higher than it was at the end of this season, and he has some favorable projections for his NBA draft position.

Devendorf would have been a fifth year senior, and considering his penchant for getting into trouble off the court, I can see him wanting to get out while the going is good. I understand that Harris has a family already, and the lure of a professional contract, even non-NBA, is better than no paycheck as a college student.

I have heard a portion of fans saying that Syracuse is going to be better off next year without these guys, and that is nonsense. There’s a reason that Flynn played more minutes this season than any player in Syracuse basketball history; there was not a worthy point guard replacement on the team. Yes, next year Scoop Jardine will be around and Brandon Triche arrives on campus, but neither are proven players. Furthermore Flynn was the best point guard since the Pearl / Douglas era.

Devo had his problems on the court (too many turnovers, no defense, no rebounding) but he was a clutch shooter, an emotional plus on the court, and had the ability to generate his own offense. That’s a tough commodity to replace.

Harris was the team’s leading rebounder, despite the fact that he was maddingly inconsistent in his effort. There is no doubt that Syracuse played better basketball when Harris played well. He was always a turnover away from making me shake my head, or a blown defensive assignment away from being pulled off the court by coach Jim Boeheim. But he was nevertheless a strong presence on the court.

I would love to have any of these guys back. That’s 43.1 points per game the Orange are losing, along with nine seasons of experience (never to be overrated), and the three best free throw shooters.

Now all is not doom and gloom. There is a lot of talent returning in veterans Andy Rautins, Rick Jackson, Arinze Onuaku, along with the return of Scoop Jardine, Kris Joseph, and Mookie Jones, and the arrival of Wesley Johnson, James Sutherland, and Brandon Triche. And of course, Jim Boeheim always seems to do well with the unproven teams.

Just for exercise (and for those who are curious), I checked on some notable teams that lost some significant players: the 1973-1974 squad, 1985-1986, 1994-1995 and 2001-2002. For those of you who are astute enough, you’ve already realized those were the squads the seasons before Syracuse when to each of it’s Final Fours.

The 1973-74 squad was led by senior point guard sensation Dennis DuVal with his 20.6 points a game, and 3.4 assists per game. Senior Fred Saunders would score 9.8 ppg along with 9.8 rebounds per game, and senior center Bob Dooms would add 4.7 ppg and 5.0 rpg. The Orangemen would also lose some important role players with Scott Stapleton and Tom Stundis.

Now the cupboards were not bare for the Orangemen that year. The teams best shooter Jimmy Lee was returning, and the team’s best player Rudy Hackett would also be back. Sophomore Jimmy Williams would emerge as a solid point guard and Chris Sease would play admirably in the other forward position. And it was not like the 1974-1975 team was dominant; it wasn’t. It was a good team, that got very hot during the NCAA tournament, made the clutch shots, and miraculously found itself in the Final Four.

The 2001-2002 team had a ton of talent, but imploded after being ranking #7 in the nation, and failed to make the NCAA tournament. Preston Shumpert was incredibly talented, but problems between him and the talented but troubled DeShaun Williams would tear the team apart. The Orangemen would lose it’s top two scorers and 36.6 ppg, along with staring point guard James Thues (he transferred). So coming off an NIT season, and losing three starters is not a good sign.

But of course, 2002-2003 was no ordinary season. The arrival of three very talented freshman (Carmelo Anthony, Gerry McNamara, and Billy Edelin) and the growth of Hakim Warrick made the team one of the most formidable squads the Orangemen ever had. And of course, a National Championship occurred.

The 1994-1995 squad was one with some high expectations, that lost in overtime in the NCAA tournament. The Syracuse backcourt had the talented Michael Lloyd (12.5 ppg, 5.2 apg), along with the effortless Lawrence ‘Poetry in ‘ Moten (19.6 ppg, 3.3 apg, 4.2 rpg). Senior Luke Jackson played small forward and brought another 11.2 ppg and 4.2 rpg. That’s a total of 43.1 ppg lost.

Syracuse did have John Wallace foregoing the NBA draft and coming back for his senior year, and Big John would carry the Orangemen to the title game with 22.2 ppg, 8.7 rpg, and 42% three point range shooting. The emergence of Todd Burgan was not unexpected, he had shown flashes of his talent his freshman year as one of the top reserves, and junior college transfer Jason Cipolla teamed with sophomore Marius Janulis to provide some excellent perimeter shooting. The real key was the emergence of fifth year senior Lazarus Sims as the dominant point guard. Sims did not score a lot (only 6.3 ppg), but he was a great ballhandler and play maker, with 7.4 apg.

But the most comparable situation for the current Syracuse squad was the 1985-1986 squad. The Orangemen were led by Pearl Washington with 17.3 ppg, 7.8 apg, and 2.5 rpg. The Pearl was dynamic on the court, and had the special quality of being able to create plays for his teammates, and also able to generate his own offense. If you compare Flynn and the Pearl, statistically they’ll be very similar, with Pearl better assist totals. Clearly too great college point guards; Pearl was better, but that is no knock on Flynn.

The Orangemen had Rafael Addison at shooting guard. As much as the loss of Devo may hurt the Orange, the loss of Raf was a bigger one for the Orangemen. Addison scored as many points as Devo, but without a three point shot. Raf was deadly from the 16-18 foot jump shot, and I’m sure he would’ve made his share of threes. Both Raf and Devo shot about 79% from the free throw line, but Raf played defense and rebounded, and was actually better at handling the ball. Devo was better at making his own plays on offense, but if you have a great point guard on the court (which both did), you don’t have to make your own plays too often. Raf’s scoring was down his senior year due to a leg injury at mid season, so both guys struggled with a bum leg of some sort. At 6’7” Raf had a few inches over Devo at 6’3”.

The third Orangemen to leave the 1985-86 squad was Wendell Alexis. Alexis was quiet on the court, but he pulled down 7.4 rpg, and scored 15.2 ppg, second on the squad. He was a terrific free throw shooter at 81% and was pretty good at running the court. Harris was a better rebounder, but Alexis was a better all around player, and was rarely a liability on the court.

So you pull three starters off the 1985-86 team, including your top three scorers, so it’s tough to predict what will happen the next season. Well, what happened was an unknown sophomore Sherman Douglas emerged as an outstanding point guard, fourth year senior Greg Monroe stepped into the starting lineup and provided excellent perimeter shooting, ball handling and leadership, and a skinny freshman Derrick Coleman showed that he could pull down a rebound or two (or more). Center Rony Seikaly, who had always been inconsistent (remind you of a current center?) developed some consistency and in the post season he stepped his game up several notches to be a dominating inside player. The Orangemen would come within a Keith Smart shot of winning the national title (Hakim Warrick was only 4 at the time and unable to block the shot).

So, who knows what to expect for 2009-2010? I have no idea. It is disappointing to lose the three big scorers from this season (along with Kris Onganaet and his hustle), but the Orange do have some talent returning, and a lot of experience, and a coach who has seen a game or two. It should be a fun year.

Syracuse All Decade Team 2000-2009

By now most Syracuse fans are aware that Jonny Flynn is going to bypass his final two years of college eligibility to go for the money and fame of the NBA. I am not going to comment in length on Flynn’s decision. As a fan I wish he would stay; next year’s team with Flynn would clearly be better than next year’s team without him. I think Flynn also has a lot of room to improve at the college game; he played the point position very well down the stretch this season, but I would like to have seen him play that way for a season and raise his game another notch. However, he is staring at the opportunity to earn millions, he is reportedly getting props by the likes of LeBron James (per the Axeman), and the NBA is the opportunity to play against the best. And the only reason Flynn came to college was to go to the NBA, so when that opportunity is there, I cannot blame him for taking it.

Flynn leaves Syracuse as probably the third best point guard in the Jim Boeheim era. The top two are clearly Pearl Washington and Sherman Douglas, in some order. Flynn comes in ahead of guys like Red Autry, Gerry McNamara, Jason Hart , Lazarus Sims and Eddie Moss.

Anyways, the decade from 2000-2009 has ended, and I have been compiling ‘All Decade’ Teams for every decade of Syracuse basketball, along with a player of the decade for each decade. [Note: for purposes of determining best player of a decade, I restrict consideration to only their activity during that decade. I realize this is unfair to the players who cross over two decades, but such as it is].

Most decades have been easy. The 1900s had Art Powell, the 1910s Joe Schwarzer, the 1920s Vic Hanson, the 1930s Ed Sonderman, the 1940s Billy Gabor, the 1950s Vinnie Cohen, and the 1960s Dave Bing.

The choices got more difficult starting with the 1970s. I narrowed it down to Rudy Hackett, Roosevelt Bouie, Louis Orr, and Dennis DuVal. DuVal was an electrifying and outstanding player, and Hackett led Syracuse to its first Final Four, but both of their impact was dwarfed by the dominance of the Bouie ‘N Louie era. So the choice came down to Louis Orr and Roosevelt Bouie. Considering the defensive dominance of Bouie that allowed a young Jim Boeheim to anchor a team around, I had to go with Roosevelt Bouie for the 1970s.

The 1980s was the best decade of Syracuse basketball, and as such there were some dominant players to select from. The top three were clearly Pearl Washington, Derrick Coleman and Sherman Douglas. Coleman was the best player of the three, but his senior season was in the 1990s, and so we’re comparing his first three seasons to the three years of Washington and four of Douglas. I think the point guard duo have an edge as a result. It then comes down to Washington and Douglas. I think Douglas was the better point guard, and the guy I want running my team. But the Pearl was an outstanding point guard himself, and a one-man press breaking machine. Honestly, I would not argue with anyone who chose opposite to me on this, but in the end I took the Pearl because of his impact on the program.

The 1990s had three outstanding players: Billy Owens, Lawrence Moten and John Wallace. Owens was the best player of the three, but Syracuse had only two seasons of him in the 1990s, and Owens has to be downgraded somewhat for his failure to win a Big East game or NCAA tournament game his last season at Syracuse. I mean, that’s half the seasons he had in the 1990s. Moten and Wallace were both four year men. Moten was the better four year player; he was a much better player than Wallace was as a freshman and sophomore. And I had written a while back that Moten’s significance in the 90s cannot be understated… he came to the program at the time of the probation period, and helped Syracuse be a winner despite the NCAA penalties, and the program kept going as a result. Moten is one of my all time favorite Syracuse players, but I gave John Wallace the nod as the top player of the 90s. He was a better player as a junior and senior than Moten was those two years, and Wallace carried the team to the NCAA Championship game his senior season.

As tough as I found the last three decades to be for selections, I found this past decade (2000-2009) to be the toughest. One of the difficulties is the presence of Carmelo Anthony, who played only one year, but clearly had the best single season of the decade and led Syracuse to its first NCAA Tournament Championship. Then you have Hak & Mac attack with Hakim Warrick and Gerry McNamara, and the ironman Jonny Flynn.

First, I will be quite clear that I have a tough time naming any player the greatest career player, or player of a decade, when his contribution to the school was only one season. That pretty much makes it very difficult for me to select Anthony. Yes, Anthony had the best single season, and he did win a National Championship. But Hakim Warrick and Gerry McNamara both also won a National Championship, in which both were significant impact players (remember ‘the block’ and ‘six threes’?).

Consider that Warrick scored over 2000 points during the decade, was the team’s leading rebounder for the decade, played in three NCAA tournaments, won a Big East Championship his senior season, and was named the Big East Player of the Year his Senior year, and all Big East first team two times.

Gerry McNamara led the school in scoring and assists for the decade, played in four NCAA tournaments (the only Orangeman to do that in the 2000s), won two Big East tournaments (including perhaps the gutsiest four series effort by a player in the history of that tournament). GMac was of course a fan favorite.

And recently we have all had the pleasure of watching Jonny Flynn and his ironman efforts on the court, and his own heroic Big East tournament efforts this season.

Gerry McNamara came away with the most hardware for the decade, but the other three were better players. Flynn was fun to watch the last two years, but Warrick and Anthony were better. So it comes down to Anthony and Warrick. Warrick was Anthony’s wingman in 2003. But as I mentioned earlier, Anthony only played one year, and he won a National Title (but so did Warrick). Anthony never won a Big East title, and he was never the Big East Player of the Year (I know that politics played into that, but nevertheless it is a fact). If Warrick had played two years and Anthony one, I could go with Anthony. But Warrick played four years; Anthony only one. Warrick had impact on 40% of the decade, Anthony only 10%. Warrick played in 3 NCAA tournaments, Anthony one. Warrick won a Big East Title, Anthony none. Warrick was on the Big East First team 2x, Anthony only once. Warrick was the Big East Player of the Year, Anthony never won that distinction.

We could play the ‘yeah, but’ game with Anthony. If Anthony had stayed four years, he likely would’ve bettered all of Warrick’s accomplishments. But Anthony made a choice to leave Syracuse and go pro; Warrick chose to stay four years. I am not going to make a decision based on what could have happened, but instead on what actually did happen. And based on that, I choose Mr. Warrick.

As for the All Decade team, that a bit easier. I came down to a backcourt of Jonny Flynn and Gerry McNamara, and a front court of Carmelo Anthony, Hakim Warrick and Arinze Onuaku. I would have a three man bench, and this bench would help the Orange shoot the lights out: Preston Shumpert, Eric Devendorf, and Demetris Nichols. Of course, the coach of the decade would be the only coach this decade, Jim Boehim.

Agree or disagree with the Player of the Decade decision? I’ve set up a ranking on Rankopedia for you to make your own vote. And if you want to comment on any of the previous decade selections, feel free to leave me a comment.

It’s a long time until next fall, but I’ll be here every week or so with more comments on the Orange of past and present.

Career & Season Milestones 2008-2009

Syracuse had a veteran team in 2008-2009, and a successful season, and the combination of those two factors do help players gain certain statistical achievements.

Points Scored for Career

Eric Devendorf: 1680 Career Points, 14th all time. He has a chance at Lawrence Moten’s school record of 2334 points. He would need 655 points, or about an average of 18.7 points a game his senior year.

Paul Harris: 1253 points, 34th all time, right behind Tony Bruin with 1294 points

Jonny Flynn: 1211 points, 38th all time, 1 point behind Wendell Alexis. Flynn is 52% of the way to Moten’s record, so if he kept at his current pace and stayed at Syracuse for four seasons, he would break Moten’s record.

Arinze Onuaku: 896 points, needs 104 to get to 1000 points. He is 60th all time in Syracuse scoring; Rick Dean is ahead of him with 912 points.

Andy Rautins: 697 points, 82nd all time. He is 5 points behind Mel Besdin. Andy would need 334 points to tie his dad Leo, with 1,031 career points. Andy should reach that mark; he scored 387 points this season.

Career Rebounds

Paul Harris: 832 career rebounds, 14th all time. He needs fifteen to catch Etan Thomas. Harris has no chance of break Derrick Coleman’s record, but an excellent opportunity to finish 2nd on the Syracuse career list, needing 263 rebounds to surpass Rony Seikaly (Harris had season rebound totals of 248, 286, and 298 in his first three years).

Arinze Onuaku: 640 rebounds, 24th all time. He is 8 behind Marty Byrnes.

Rick Jackson: 324 rebounds, 58th all time. He is 9 behind Gerry McNamara.

Kris Onganaet: 309 rebounds, 63rd all time.

Eric Devendorf: 277 rebounds, 67th all time. He is 9 behind Ron Payton.

Andy Rautins: 209 rebounds, 86th all time. He is 3 behind Ernie Austin, and 320 behind his father, so Leo will be able to keep that honor away from his son.

Jonny Flynn: 198 rebounds, 88th all time. He is 6 behind Ross Kindel.

Career Assists

Jonny Flynn: 439 assists, 7th all time. He is 100 behind Eddie Moss for 6th place. Flynn is currently not on pace to break Sherman Douglas’ school record of 960, but it is something in his reach if he increases his assist production to about 8.6 assists per game (which would tie a school record).

Eric Devendorf: 374 assists, 14th all time. He is 7 behind Billy Owens.

Paul Harris: 254 assists, 31st all time. He is one behind John Wallace.

Andy Rautins: 176 assists, 49th all time. He is one behind Marty Byrnes, and 247 behind his father Leo, so once again dad looks to be able to hold onto that position.

Kris Onganaet: 75 assists, 81st all time.

Rick Jackson: 55 assists, 96th all time. He is one behind Fred Saunders for 95th.

Arinze Onuaku: 53 assists, 99th all time. He is one behind Rich Cornwall.

Three Point Field Goals

Eric Devendorf: 208 three point field goals, 3rd all time. He should catch Preston Shumpert for 2nd needing only 42 to pass him. However, Gerry McNamara seems safe at #1 with 400.

Andy Rautins: 184 three point field goals, 7th all time. He needs 6 to catch Marius Janulis, and should also pass Preston Shumpert needing 66 to accomplish that. Rautins trails Devendorf by 24 three point field goals; he had 20 more than Devo in 2008-2009, so it will be close to see who finishes second all time at Syracuse.

Jonny Flynn: 101 three point field goals, 15th all time. He needs 4 to tie Jason Cipolla.

Paul Harris: 22 three point field goals, 39th all time. He needs one to catch Michael Lloyd.

Mookie Jones and Kris Joseph both have 7 three point field goals, 46th all time. They are one behind Ramel Lloyd.

Kris Onganaet: 5 three point field goals, 51st all time.
Jake Presutti: 3 three point field goals, 56th all time.

Other Career Notes

Eric Devendorf is 7th in career turnovers with 331. Jason Hart holds the record with 436 which is within Devo’s grasp. Let us hope he doesn’t get it.

Arinze Onuaku is 14th all time in blocked shots with 113, and Rick Jackson is 15th with 104.

Eric Devendorf is 5th all time in 3 point shooting accuracy (minimum 100 attempts) at 37.8%. Andy Rautins is 10th at 35.9%. The worst ever was Elvir Ovcina at 24.2%. Paul Harris needs to attempt two more 3 point field goals to qualify; when he does that he’ll be the worst ever at 22.5% (and Harris would hold that record even if he made those two attempts).

Eric Devendorf is 14th all time in free throws made with 306.

Single Season Rankings

Harris’ 298 rebounds was the 18th best rebounding total for a season.

Johnny Flynn’s 180 free throws made was the 5th best single season ever for Syracuse. His 237 attempts was 10th best.

Arinze Onuaku set the school record for field goal percentage in a season with 178 of 268 made, or 66.7%, breaking the mark held by Roosevelt Bouie of 65.4% set in 1979-1980. Rick Jackson had the 6th best shooting season ever, with 139 of 223, or 62.3%.

Jonny Flynn set the school record for most minutes in a season with 1418 minutes, break John Wallace’s 1995-1996 record of 1379.

Flynn had the 4th best minutes/game mark with 37.3 minutes/game. Billy Owens owns the school record with 38.0 minutes/game, set in 1990-1991.

Flynn has the 5th best assist totals for a season with 254. Sherman Douglas holds the school record with 326 (Douglas is also #2 & #3 on the list). Flynn’s total was the 2nd most ever for a sophomore.

Flynn tied the school record for most games started in a season with 38, which has now been accomplished by 12 players.

Andy Rautins 102 three point field goals was 4th best ever for Syracuse. Gerry McNamara holds the record with 107.

Flynn had the 4th worst turnover total in school history with 129. Sherman Douglas holds the record with 139 in 1988-1989.

Flynn’s 663 points was the 11th best point total for a season, and the most points ever for a sophomore season.

Flynn’s 6.7 assists per game was the 6th best average for a season. Sherman Douglas holds the record with 8.6 per game.

There are 43 Syracuse players who have had more than 100 assists in a season where they also recorded turnovers. Jonny Flynn’s assist/turnover ratio of 1.97 is 10th best ever. Sherman Douglas holds the school record with a ratio of 2.85. Eric Devendorf has the 3rd worst season ever with a ratio of 1.01. Andy Rautins was 26th best, with a ratio of 1.53.

And then the really bad record: Arinze Onuaku obliterated the Syracuse season record for worst free throw shooter (100 minimum attempts) at 29.8% (37 of 124). The previous record was Terrence Roberts at 42.1%. Onuaku was so bad that if we lowered the standard to 50 attempts he still would hold the record (the previous record was 38.3% at that standard). Using the 100 minimum standard, Onuaku would still have broken the record if he had made an additional 15 free throws.

Onuaku has pulled ahead of Terrence Roberts for the worst career free throw shooter (minimum 200 attempts). Onuaku is at 38.7% (122 of 315), while Roberts was at a ‘lofty’ 42.1%. If Onuaku were to make the next 100 free throws he attempted, his career percent was only be 53%.

On the bright side, the greatest field goal percentage for a career for Syracuse (minimum 200 attempts) is 68.5% by Jeremy McNeil. Onuaku has a career percentage of 64.1%, which is second best ever.

Team Notes

Syracuse as a team had the 5th most wins ever in school history, with 28. In part this was because of tying a school record 38 games played (which was also accomplished in 1986-1987, 1988-1989, and 1995-96). That is what happens when you win preseason tournament, go four deep into the Big East Tournament, and play 3 NCAA Tournament games.

Syracuse finished the regular season ranked 13th in the AP polls. That is the 12th best finish for the Orangemen ever, and their best poll finish since 2004-2005 where they finished 11th.

Coach Jim Boeheim finished the year with 799 wins. His first win of 2009-2010 will give him #800.

Thanks for the Season!

My thanks to the Orange for giving us a great season of enjoyment. 5-0 in overtime victories this season, including one very memorable one for the ages! A great run in the Big East Tournament and a return to the NCAA Tournament where they had two strong wins before inevitably losing to a strong Oklahoma team with a great Blake Griffin.

It was a pleasure watching Jonny Flynn develop from a great player to a great point guard over the course of the season, and for him wearing his heart on his sleeve through these past few weeks. The team started out well, and continued to improve as a unit throughout the year, despite a few occasionally distractions and injuries.

But starting with the overtime win against Georgetown, until Friday's loss to Oklahoma, the Orange played some outstanding basketball, showed a never give up attitude, and provided the fans with a lot of great memories.

2009-2010 should be quite a year. I have no idea which of the current players will be returning, but it should be a very talented team no matter what combination is on the court.

I have put together my summary of the season on OrangeHoops.org, so I will not repeat it here. Within the week, I promise to have my annual season ending statistics commentary.

Inspired!

Wow! What a game. If you could not stay up to 1:40 am EDT last evening, you missed one of the greatest games in basketball history. Six overtimes.

The final score was 127-117 Syracuse over Connecticut. But the Orange never led in any of the previous five overtime periods. Syracuse showed early in the season in the Florida and Kansas games that they would not fold under pressure, and they have kept that true to form this entire season. What a welcome change from the past few years.

I have been harsh on Jonny Flynn's playmaking this season, and I believe rightfully so. But in the last few games, I have seen Flynn develop from being a great player to being a great point guard. He is now dishing the ball off to his teammates, allowing them to take the better shots, and keeping everyone involved. He is elevating his play, and that is bringing the team with him.

So many highlights from last night. Arinze Onuaku... you know all Orange fans were burying their faces in their hands when he went to the line with 30 seconds to go in regulation and he had to make two. And the big guy came through with two free throws.

Devendorf's last second shot for the win... nothing but net. I think the officials made the correct call in taking away the basket due to time expiring... but it could not have possibly been any closer. I do have an objection with the officials not calling charging on Thabeet for plowing over Jonny Flynn on the pick on the inbounds (though I can understand them not wanting to make that call at the end of the game).

Andy Rautins hitting a clutch 3 to tie the game with 12 seconds to go in the 3rd overtime period. It must be something in the Rautin gene pool that allows heroics in third period overtimes (reference: Leo's tip in winning basket in the 1981 Villanova triple overtime win). And Andy's three point shot to start the 6th overtime period basically ended the game.

Flynn's 34 points and 11 assists are strong numbers, but 67 minutes and 16-16 from the free throw line are the numbers that really jump out.

Paul Harris... what an up and down night for Paul. 56 minutes, 29 points, 13-14 from the free throw line. Here's the huge stat: 22 rebounds. Some of those 22 rebounds were his own missed shots (of which he had many at point blank in overtime), but still a great effort from Harris.

For a few minutes of overtime, Syracuse had to play against UConn and Thabeet without any center or power forward on the team. Onuaku, Onganaet and Jackson had all fouled out. I was concerned that was the end for the Orange, but they still hung in there.

You've got to wonder what was going through Justin Thomas's mind when Devendorf fouled out and Thomas, a walk-on, had to go onto the court. He played 18 minutes all season, plus three more against Seton Hall Wednesday night. He ended up playing 7 minutes, every one of them crucial, against the #4 team in the country, last night. I'm guessing Jake Presutti was praying that neither Rautins or Harris would pick up their next foul, their fifth, or he would have been on the court too.

Who knows what the Orange will be able to do tonight. They are young men, but the emotional drain has got to be significant. The big men actually should not be too physically tired. Jackson played only 29 minutes, Onganaet 28 minutes, and Onuaku 28 minutes. But the guards will definitely be the ones to watch.

I think the win last night easily moves the Orange into a #4 seed in the NCAA tournament, regardless of how they do this evening. We'll see.

GO ORANGE!

Thoughts on Wrapping up the Regular Season

I am very happy with how the Orange finished out their regular season. They held tough with a good Villanova team, and then they won the final four games of the regular season to finish 23-8. The last four games were really promising. They beat St. Johns, Rutgers and Cincinnati, which in itself would not impress anyone. However, it is the way they beat those teams that was so rewarding.

The Orange played solid defense in those three games, and they ended up playing hard until the end of each of the games, putting all the games in the blow out category. That is what good teams are supposed to do; bury the teams weaker than them, instead of letting them hang around.

The win against Marquette, a top twenty team, on the road, to end the season was an especially nice touch. It is very nice being in that comfortable position knowing that the Orange are virtually guaranteed an NCAA berth, and now they are just playing for the seeding position. A welcome change from the past two seasons.
Syracuse had only one ‘bad’ loss all year and that was to Cleveland State. That game is not going to hurt them as it is probably considered more of a fluke with the half court shot beating them. The Georgetown loss does not look good now, but they were a top 10 team at the time. Syracuse beat every other team they should beat this season. I had written in the preseason if they went 22-9 with their schedule I would find that very impressive, and then ended 23-8. So no complaints here.

Jonny Flynn made the Big East Second Team, and I have no problem with that position. The Big East got smart and went back to a reasonable First Team, Second Team and Third Team selection, instead of the incredibly bloated ten man teams the past three years. Flynn is the best basketball player at Syracuse, and definitely one of the best guards in the league. He is not a great point guard, as I have written a few times this season, but he is absolutely a great player.

The happiest moment for me in the Marquette game was the three point shot by Rautins to seal the win in overtime. Why? That play showed me a maturing process for Jonny Flynn as a point guard. Flynn drove the lane and drew the defenders. 99% of the time this season, Flynn was going to force that shot. Instead he did the correct move and he dished the ball out to Rautins who was wide open because his defender had slipped down to cover Flynn. If Flynn is going to start playing like a point guard and making those smart decisions, then the Orange become a far tougher team to beat.

As good as Flynn and Eric Devendorf are, the fate of Syracuse falls into the hands of Andy Rautins and Paul Harris. Rautins is probably the most ‘valuable’ player on the team this season. He shot 40% from three point range in the games Syracuse won and 30% in the eight they lost. When Syracuse gets Rautins involved in the offense, it opens up the rest of the court, making it easier for Flynn, Devendorf, and Harris all to get to the basket. And Rautins has shown he is very adept at passing that ball to the cutting player or to the open player down in the post. As offense flows through Rautins, the team plays more ‘team ball’, and less one-on-one.

Harris’ rebounding is the other crucial factor for the Orange. When Harris shows up to play and works to get his rebounds, the Orange are a tough team to beat. They are 9-2 when Harris had double digit rebounds, 14-6 when he does not. Rebounding is mostly a motivational issue, and I do not know why Harris has a tough time staying motivated for rebounding on a regular basis. But I do know that when he does, the opposition gets limited shot opportunities and the Orange play well.

Syracuse’s free throw shooting as a team is actually very comforting. Throw out Arinze Onuaku’s numbers, and Syracuse shoots 70% as a team. Flynn shoots 79% from the charity strip, Devendorf 81% and Harris 73%. Rautins is only 68%, but he has had limited free throw opportunities this season.

Onuaku is of course a well documented poor free throw shooter. He shot 30% from the line for the regular season, and an astonishing 17% (10-60) in Big East play.
Rautins is on the flip side for conference play. Rautins hit 100% of his free throws in Big East play. But despite playing 469 minutes in conference play, Rautins only took five free throw attempts during that time. That’s one free throw every 93.8 minutes of play. That is probably reflective on the fact that he took only 28 shots inside the three point arc in conference play, and the Big East lets the players play tough inside. But still, an amazing number to me.

I do not know how far the Orange can go this post season. I think winning the Big East Tournament would be far tougher than making the Final Four. To win the Big East Tournament, Syracuse would likely have to beat along the way Louisville, Connecticut and Pittsburgh. There are very few teams that good in the country, and Syracuse would be very unlikely to face three teams of that caliber in the NCAA tournament.

I don’t think the Orange have what it takes to win the NCAA tournament. Their inside game is not strong enough to face some of the other top teams. However, the Orange have shown a strong ability to win the close games, and they did beat Kansas and Memphis in hostile environments. I know if I were another team, I would not want to draw Syracuse as an opponent in the tournament. Syracuse is a very experienced team with their top 7 players consisting of one senior, 3 fourth year juniors, another junior, and two sophomores. In today’s college basketball, that is a lot of experience.

Where The Orange Stand

The overtime win against Georgetown yesterday was another classic Syracuse/Georgetown game, going down to the wire with a lot of dramatic action and heroic efforts. The win was crucial for the Orange stopping a slide that saw Syracuse losing six of their last seven games. While the win against the tumbling Hoyas is not as impressive as it would have been a month ago, it is still a big win.

Syracuse is now 19-7 for the season, 7-6 within the Big East conference with five games to go. The strong out of conference schedule and the success against that schedule is looming as extremely important for the Orange right now. But the NCAA selection committee looks at how you do in your last ten games, and that, with other factors, is going to become very important right now.

Syracuse is above .500 in the Big East, but they are 0-5 against the six teams ahead of them in the standings, and 7-1 against the nine teams below them. That pretty much says the Orange are situated in the conference rankings right where they belong. Being the 7th team from a conference is not an ideal situation to be in, though with the depth of the Big East, it is a good position right now. However, the last five games are going to be very important.

Syracuse is currently 2-5 in road games. Their last five games are against Villanova, @ St. Johns, Cincinnati, Rutgers, and @ Marquette. Two of those teams are ahead of Syracuse in the standings: Villanova and Marquette. Syracuse cannot afford to lose to any of the three teams below them: St. Johns, Cincinnati and Rutgers. If they won those three and lost to Villanova and Marquette, they would be 22-9 going into the Big East tournament, 10-8 in the conference, 5-5 in their last 10 games, and 3-6 on the road. I’d be afraid of those last two numbers, and I think it would require them to win at least a couple of games in the Big East tournament to show they are NCAA tourney worthy, enough to get them off that bubble. In this scenario, one and done, or one win and then out in the Big East tournament, could leave the Orange on the bubble… and I know from past history I do not want to be there.

However, a win at Marquette on March 7th would be huge, as it would be a quality road win against a top 20 team to close out the regular season, it would make them 4-5 on the road, and 6-4 in their last 10. That would put them in the NCAA tourney regardless of how they perform in the Big East tournament. Likewise a win against Villanova, instead of Marquette, would also be important and improve the resume greatly.

Winning the last five would be great for Syracuse, and it is well within their reach. That would take them to 24-7 going into the Big East tournament, 12-6 in the conference,7-3 in their last ten games, and 4-5 on the road. They are going to have to play some defense, get some offensive cohesion, and improve their teamwork.

The Georgetown game saw Johnny Flynn join the 1,000 point club for Syracuse, becoming the 51st player to reach that level. Paul Harris reached that mark earlier this year, now at 1,123 points, 43rd all time. Eric Devendorf is ten points from becoming the 20th player to reach 1,500 career points. The game also saw Arinze Onuaku pass Carmelo Anthony on the all time scoring list (though it took Arinze three seasons to accomplish what Melo did in one).

As reported in earlier blogs, Onuaku is toying with some Syracuse records. He is the all time worst free throw shooter in Syracuse history, and with his 33% shooting this year (33 of 99), he is securing that position. His career total is now 118 for 290, 40.7%, keeping him well ahead (or behind) of Terrence Roberts (48%). Onuaku is on the verge of shattering the single season free throw shooting record, with his 33% shooting. The previous mark, for someone with over 100 shots, is 42.1% by Terrence Roberts who went 56 of 133 in the 2005-2006 season.

On the positive side, Onuaku is still on pace to set the single season field goal accuracy. He is 127 of 188 from the field, at 67.6%, ahead of Roosevelt Bouie’s 65.4% in 1979-1980.

Other items of note: Devendorf is now 7th all time in three point field goals. Flynn is at 19th, and Andy Rautins is 10th all time.

Flynn is now 14th all time in assists. Devendorf is just behind him at 15th.

Let’s hope there is a lot to cheer for in the last five conference games this year.

Where The Orange Stand

The overtime win against Georgetown yesterday was another classic Syracuse/Georgetown game, going down to the wire with a lot of dramatic action and heroic efforts. The win was crucial for the Orange stopping a slide that saw Syracuse losing six of their last seven games. While the win against the tumbling Hoyas is not as impressive as it would have been a month ago, it is still a big win.

Syracuse is now 19-7 for the season, 7-6 within the Big East conference with five games to go. The strong out of conference schedule and the success against that schedule is looming as extremely important for the Orange right now. But the NCAA selection committee looks at how you do in your last ten games, and that, with other factors, is going to become very important right now.

Syracuse is above .500 in the Big East, but they are 0-5 against the six teams ahead of them in the standings, and 7-1 against the nine teams below them. That pretty much says the Orange are situated in the conference rankings right where they belong. Being the 7th team from a conference is not an ideal situation to be in, though with the depth of the Big East, it is a good position right now. However, the last five games are going to be very important.

Syracuse is currently 2-5 in road games. Their last five games are against Villanova, @ St. Johns, Cincinnati, Rutgers, and @ Marquette. Two of those teams are ahead of Syracuse in the standings: Villanova and Marquette. Syracuse cannot afford to lose to any of the three teams below them: St. Johns, Cincinnati and Rutgers. If they won those three and lost to Villanova and Marquette, they would be 22-9 going into the Big East tournament, 10-8 in the conference, 5-5 in their last 10 games, and 3-6 on the road. I’d be afraid of those last two numbers, and I think it would require them to win at least a couple of games in the Big East tournament to show they are NCAA tourney worthy, enough to get them off that bubble. In this scenario, one and done, or one win and then out in the Big East tournament, could leave the Orange on the bubble… and I know from past history I do not want to be there.

However, a win at Marquette on March 7th would be huge, as it would be a quality road win against a top 20 team to close out the regular season, it would make them 4-5 on the road, and 6-4 in their last 10. That would put them in the NCAA tourney regardless of how they perform in the Big East tournament. Likewise a win against Villanova, instead of Marquette, would also be important and improve the resume greatly.

Winning the last five would be great for Syracuse, and it is well within their reach. That would take them to 24-7 going into the Big East tournament, 12-6 in the conference,7-3 in their last ten games, and 4-5 on the road. They are going to have to play some defense, get some offensive cohesion, and improve their teamwork.

The Georgetown game saw Johnny Flynn join the 1,000 point club for Syracuse, becoming the 51st player to reach that level. Paul Harris reached that mark earlier this year, now at 1,123 points, 43rd all time. Eric Devendorf is ten points from becoming the 20th player to reach 1,500 career points. The game also saw Arinze Onuaku pass Carmelo Anthony on the all time scoring list (though it took Arinze three seasons to accomplish what Melo did in one).

As reported in earlier blogs, Onuaku is toying with some Syracuse records. He is the all time worst free throw shooter in Syracuse history, and with his 33% shooting this year (33 of 99), he is securing that position. His career total is now 118 for 290, 40.7%, keeping him well ahead (or behind) of Terrence Roberts (48%). Onuaku is on the verge of shattering the single season free throw shooting record, with his 33% shooting. The previous mark, for someone with over 100 shots, is 42.1% by Terrence Roberts who went 56 of 133 in the 2005-2006 season.

On the positive side, Onuaku is still on pace to set the single season field goal accuracy. He is 127 of 188 from the field, at 67.6%, ahead of Roosevelt Bouie’s 65.4% in 1979-1980.

Other items of note: Devendorf is now 7th all time in three point field goals. Flynn is at 19th, and Andy Rautins is 10th all time.

Flynn is now 14th all time in assists. Devendorf is just behind him at 15th.

Let’s hope there is a lot to cheer for in the last five conference games this year.

9-0 and unstoppable Onuaku

Arinze Onuaku is off to terrific start to his junior campaign. He is averaging 13.3 points a game, with 7.8 rebounds, despite playing only 27 minutes a game (and typically not for foul trouble, but just to get some rest). However, those aren’t his impressive numbers. 79.4% is the number to look at. That is Onuaku’s field goal percentage for the season. When Onuaku gets the ball inside, he is virtually unstoppable, and for his last 17 attempts he has been, making each and every one of them (credit Brent Axeman for noting that one).

At Onuaku’s current pace he would shatter the Syracuse single season field goal percent record. The current record is 65.4% by Roosevelt Bouie in the 1979-1980 season, when he made 189 of 289 attempts. Onuaku’s effort is especially noteworthy because Syracuse has been playing some tough basketball teams this early season. They have not faced any dominant centers like they will in a few games this Big East season, but there are not too many players in the country with Onuaku’s build, so those types of matchups are going to be rare not matter who they play.

That’s not to suggest that Onuaku is Superman. His kryptonite is the free throw line, where he continues to challenge Terrence Roberts for the distinction of being the worst ever for Syracuse. However, I did question earlier this year why Syracuse was not feeding Onuaku the ball more often, instead relying on the three point shot or driving the lane from the perimeter. It would seem to me that you would want to feed Onuaku as much as you could, which should soften up a lot of defenses.

I know there have been some occasions where Onuaku has not played aggressively and has not worked to get open inside. Notably, he took some flak in the Cornell game for getting outhustled down low (though it we need to be fair and report that he was 5-5 from the floor that game). But there are a lot of moments in the game where Syracuse does not appear to be trying to work the ball down low. That comes under the responsibility of the point guard.

Let’s look at the numbers of two Syracuse players this season, both prorated to 40 minutes of playing time.

Player 1:

14.5 points, 5.8 assists, 2.6 turnovers, 2.6 steals, 32% from 3 point range, 70% FT pct.

Player 2:

21.5 points, 5.8 assists, 3.6 turnovers, 1.9 steals, 41% from 3 point range, 74% FT pct.

Which of those players is the point guard, and which is the shooting guard? It’s a little obvious if you’ve been watching Syracuse basketball this year; Jonny Flynn is player #2. A little less obvious is player #1 which is Andy Rautins. However, doesn’t it seem like player one has more of the stats of a point guard? Clearly a better turnover to assist ratio, and more steals, along with a lower scoring average.

I had mentioned earlier this year that I was concerned that Flynn was leading Syracuse is scoring every single game. Don’t get me wrong; Flynn is having an outstanding early season, and is a very special player. He has been making the clutch shots, and Syracuse is 9-0. But Flynn came to Syracuse with a reputation of being a strong playmaker, and I’m not seeing a player like that right now.

I remember the legendary Magic Johnson was always credited with sacrificing his own scoring to make sure his teammates scored. If Magic was on a fast break with an easy layup, he would always dish the ball off to a trailing teammate to reward his teammate for hustling down the court with him. I have not seen that selflessness from Flynn yet. I segued into this earlier by stating I did not think the team was getting the ball to Onuaku down low enough. And that responsibility falls on Flynn.

Flynn had an off shooting night against Long Beach State on Saturday. I have no problem with that; those nights occur. But Flynn ended up with only two assists. I would have expected my team’s point guard to have a big assist night, a big playmaking night in a game where he realized early he wasn’t shooting well. And he did not end up having that night.

Syracuse could go quite far this season, particularly with Flynn playing the way he has been playing. I am just of the belief that the primary job of the point guard is to elevate the play of all his teammates. It does bring concern to me that he is not developing that reputation right now in games that do not require him to score for Syracuse to win. There will be more than one game remaining this season where Syracuse will need Flynn to be the hero to win. Letting his teammates be the hero for some of the other games would pay big dividends down the stretch.

2-0, Many to Go

The Orangemen are off to a 2-0 start. Manhandling LeMoyne was expected, and Richmond was a good early season challenge. I think like a lot of fans, I would have hoped for an easier win; partly because it would have been easier to watch, but also because it would have been an indicator of how much better Syracuse was this season than last.

The expectation clearly would be that the Orange would be better this year. The team lost only one player from last year, 1st round pick Donte’ Greene. Losing the talent of a first round pick can hurt a team. But look at what the Orangemen gained for this season: an extra year of experience and maturity for Jonny Flynn, Paul Harris, Kris Ongenaet, Arinze Onuaku and Rick Jackson ; the healthy return of Andy Rautins and Eric Devendorf; the arrival of highly tauted freshmen Kris Joseph and Mookie Jones. That’s a lot of significant plusses versus the one minus. So without even playing a game, we could feel confident they were better than last year.
The team is better, but the schedule this year is significantly tougher too. The conference schedule is absurdly difficult, and the non-conference schedule is one that Dick Vitale would not complain about. So Syracuse is going to lose some games this year, and likely some non-conference games.

That is what made the win over Richmond so crucial. Syracuse cannot afford the bad losses this year, and a loss to Richmond, at home, would have been a bad loss . That does not mean that Richmond was not a difficult team to play; they were. Their motion offense can be difficult to handle defensively, and they had some guys who can shoot threes, and Atlantic 10 teams had beaten Syracuse three times in a row.

There were things I was happy to see in the Richmond game. Eric Devendorf played like the Devo we knew pre-injury. He played with emotion, he took and made some crucial shots, and he took over the game at the right moment and time. He also showed the typical Devo careless turnover (seven of them) and some shaky defense at times. His contributions on the court greatly exceeded his errors.

Jonny Flynn showed he can still score and drive the lane. He made some impressive three point shots early on. And 27 points is a good night, no matter who you play. Arinze Onuaku was a stud inside, making every shot with ease in the first half, and most in the second (though missing a few gimmes). Kris Joseph showed some flashes of talent in his time on the court, and Ongenaet provided his usual quiet but necessary rebounding.

However, as nice as all those positives were, there was nothing new… no signs of growth for the team. We’ve seen Devo, Flynn and Onuaku play that way before, routinely. This was a game the team likely would have lost last year, but with Devo and Rautins on the court, we had expected (at least I did) that the meltdowns so prevalent last year would be less likely this year. Now, it is only two games into the year, so there is not a lot to look at for growth; I am just saying that we have not seen any yet.

Syracuse settled for playing on the perimeter far too much, shades of last year. Onuaku was unstoppable inside, and yet Flynn stopped feeding him the ball with about seven minutes to go in the first half. Why?

Devo wore his emotions on his sleeve as he always has, and rose his level of intensity in the second half. But I did not feel it was that contagious to his teammates. I would like to see Onuaku get fired up some time. I realize he could serious injure someone if he were out of control, but how about a scowl or a shout now and then? Paul Harris decided to be ‘no show’ Paul for the Richmond game. He played Jekyll and Hyde last year with his intensity vacillating game to game, and he just wasn’t there that night.

All summer we kept wondering how coach Jim Boeheim was going to spread the playing time at the guard position. We all knew that Jonny Flynn was too tired last year having to play every minute of every game down the stretch. With Rautins and Devo back, Harris able to play the guard, and freshman Mookie Jones also able to play time there, Flynn was clearly going to get his break. Instead, Flynn played 39 of the 40 minutes. Now historically, Boeheim has always ridden his point guards; Sherman Douglas and Pearl Washington almost never left the game. But the constant theme last year was how tired Flynn was, so I expected a change.

Rautins and Devo both got their playing time, with 26 and 31 minutes respectively. Syracuse played a lot of three guard offense, with Rautins taking the forward defensive position. I’m sure we will see a lot of that this season.

Jonny Flynn is a decent free throw shooter, making 78% of his shots last season. But also similar to last season, Flynn missed the crucial free throws down the stretch. Not enough to cost Syracuse the game, but enough to allow Richmond to hang around and have a shot at it. The ball is going to be in Devo, Flynn and Rautin’s hands down the stretch; Flynn’s going to have to starting making those.

Rautins was very cold from the perimeter, going 0-5 from three point range. He was taking the three point shots from long distance, and his shots were consistently long. I’m confident he’ll start making them, but it would have been nice to have seen him make them now.
Syracuse has a very deep bench, and Boeheim only went eight players deep. Freshman Mookie Jones did not even play, and Rick Jackson played only nine minutes. Again, Boeheim almost always goes to a short bench in close games; I am just surprised the Jones did not get into the game in the first half.

Syracuse is lacking a strong scoring presence from the forward position. Harris can score, but he prefers to do it by having the ball in his possession and driving from the perimeter like a guard; Syracuse does not need another guy who can drive from the perimeter. Ongenaet only gets garbage shots. They need a guy who can slash to the hoop without the ball and get the feed, and I have not seen that yet. I’m hoping Kris Joseph will be that guy.

But hey, it is only two games. Syracuse is 2-0; they’ve done what they need to do at this point. The positives we expected were there. There is a lot to build upon and still a lot of potential for the team. I’m very confident the NCAA tournament is in their future, and the team will be a lot of fun to watch.

Let’s go Orange!