The Best Orangeman Basketball Player In My Lifetime

Who was the best basketball player ever to play for the Syracuse Orange?  I am not referring to their entire career, but rather their peak year, how good of a player did they become while an Orangeman?  I am not talking about potentially how good they could have been, but rather what they did show to us.

I am going to restrict this to players I saw play. Dave Bing who played his last game for the Orangemen a couple of months before I was born is therefore excluded.

I do not mean which player had the greatest season ever for the Orangemen. That would clearly be Carmelo Anthony.  Anthony was the best player on the only Syracuse team to win the NCAA National Championship. 

I think John Wallace was clearly the most valuable player ever for the Orangemen. Wallace carried the Orangemen to the brink of the 1996 National Championship with no teammate named to any All Big East teams that year.

I think Lawrence Moten has the highest basketball IQ of any Orangemen I ever saw play. He was so smooth staying within the flow of the game, and would effortlessly and often quietly score 20 points.

I think Pearl Washington was the most significant player in Orangemen history. He brought recognition to Syracuse University at a National level, helping the Orange be a national power.

I can also state that my five all-time favorite Orangemen, chronologically, are Rafael Addison, Stephen Thompson, Lawrence Moten, Gerry McNamara, and Andy Rautins.

Who do I think were the five best players for the Orangemen?

Fifth:  John Wallace.  Wallace as a senior carried the Orangemen to the National Championship game, averaging 22.2 points per game (ppg), and 8.7 rebounds per game (rpg).  He shot 42% from three point range, the best on the team, even outshooting, percentage wise, the team’s three point specialist Marius Janulis (41.6% to John’s 42.1%).    He would lead the team in scoring by 9.5 ppg, and would score 30+ points five times, and led the team in scoring 30 of the 38 games played.  Wallace played strong defense, leading the team with 63 blocks, and also had 44 steals. He played exceptionally well in the NCAA tournament, leading the team in scoring all six games, including a great 30 point effort against Georgia, and a 29 point effort in the championship game. The Orangemen were only down by four points in the Championship game to a much more talented Kentucky team, when Wallace fouled out with about 2 minutes to go.

Rony Seikaly

Fourth:  Rony Seikaly.  Seikaly came to Syracuse as a raw recruit with a flabby body and poor basketball skills.  He developed into an outstanding collegiate center, with a nice turnaround jump shot, and great defensive skills. Seikaly really came into his own during the NCAA tournament his junior year.  Seikaly would have a dominating game against Florida’s highly touted Duane Schintzius, scoring 33.  Seikaly kept that playing level going as the Orangemen upset North Carolina and eventually got to the NCAA finals, before losing to Indiana.  Seikaly performed at that level most of his senior year averaging 16.3 ppg, 9.6 rpg, along with 85 blocked shots.  He shot 57% from the floor, and was great at running the court both on offense and defense.  The team was loaded with scoring talent with Sherman Douglas, Matt Roe, Stephen Thompson and Derrick Coleman in the lineup, and yet Seikaly led the team in scoring primarily with his low post moves.  The Orangemen would win the Big East Championship but lose in the NCAA tournament to Rhode Island when Douglas was off his game due to illness. Seikaly scored 27 points and had 10 rebounds in that loss.

Carmelo Anthony

Third: Carmelo Anthony.  I know I’m going to take flak from several Orange fans for this selection, as they think he was number one.  Anthony was without a doubt one of the most gifted basketball players in SU history.   As a freshman, and his only season with Syracuse, he displayed a wide array of offensive skills. He was adept at scoring from the post, driving the lane, and pulling up from perimeter, making 34% of his three point shots. He displayed an A-Type personality and was eager to be the man with the ball, and did well in that position.  He would lead the team in scoring 24 of the 35 games they played, scoring 30+ points three times. The biggest performance of his career came in the Final Four where Anthony made 12 of 19 shots for 33 points, with extremely stellar play, to dominate Texas and lead the Orangemen to the championship game.  Anthony would score 20 points, with 10 rebounds and 7 assists in the Championship game, leading all scorers, as the Orangemen won their first National Championship.

Billy Owens

Second: Billy Owens.  Owens was simply dominating his junior year at Syracuse.  Derrick Coleman and Stephen Thompson had graduated, and Owens stepped up to fill the void scoring 23.2 ppg, with 11.6 rpg and 3.5 assists per game (apg).  He shot 39% from three point range, and 51% from the floor overall.  He was offensively a dominating player inside and outside.  Defensively he led the team with 78 steals, and led the team in scoring 21 of the 32 games played. In his career he had 8 games with 30+ points, and ten games with 15+ rebounds.    He led the team to a Big East regular season title, and a 26-4 record with a #6 ranking.  There were hopes that he could carry SU to a national title like Danny Manning had done with Kansas in 1988.   Inexplicably the team crashed in the post season, losing its first round of the Big East tournament to Villanova, despite 17 points and 22 rebounds from Owens.  They would then get upset by Richmond in the first round of the NCAA despite 22 points from Owens.

Derrick Coleman

First:  Derrick Coleman.  Derrick Coleman was a tremendously gifted 6’10” forward who could dominate players inside and also score from the perimeter, in an era where big men did not do that.  Coleman was the greatest rebounder in SU and NCAA history, with a NCAA record 1,537 rebounds. He averaged 12.1 rpg his senior year, despite having to share rebounds with Billy Owens, Stephen Thompson and LeRon Ellis.  He scored 17.9 ppg, essentially splitting the scoring duties with prolific scorers Owens (18.2 ppg) and Thompson (17.8 ppg).  He shot 37% from three point range and 55% from the floor.  Coleman had 51 steals and led the team with 67 blocks.  The Orangemen would win the Big East regular season title despite having no real point guard play. They would reach a #4 ranking in the country, before losing in the Big East Finals to UConn, and then losing to Minnesota in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen.  Coleman would be recognized for his stellar season by being the Big East Player of the Year, making the AP All American First team, and being drafted #1 overall in the NBA draft.

I know many want to argue Anthony over Coleman.  They are of course, different style players.  Anthony was definitely a better player as a freshman than Coleman was, though Coleman was the Big East Rookie of the Year, and he did pull down 19 rebounds in the National Championship game.  But we are not comparing a freshman Anthony to a freshman Coleman. We are comparing a freshman Anthony to a senior Coleman.

Consider that Coleman had four collegiate seasons to master his game, Anthony just one.    He was a 22 year old 6’10”, 225 lb senior when he completed his senior year.    Melo was a 6’8”, 195 lb forward, 18 years old when he completed his freshman year.

Coleman was recognized as the top player in the country and his conference.  Anthony didn’t win the Big East Player of the Year (Troy Bell did), and was not an AP First Team All-American. I know some politics come into that, but Anthony did not make enough impression to overcome those politics. 

Coleman played in an era where all talented players stayed 3-4 years in college.  Guys like Patrick Ewing, Chris Mullin, Michael Jordan, Ralph Sampson, Billy Owens, Danny Manning, etc. all perfected their games in college. And Coleman had to play against players like that routinely. And he was able to succeed against them. Today, all those guys, including Coleman, would have been in the NBA after their freshman/sophomore years.

Anthony had his talented opposition to play against too. But those talented upper classmen that would have given him a battle were gone, already earning their millions in the NBA.  There are guys who develop and by their fourth year are outstanding college players, guys like our own Michael Gbinije and Rakeem Christmas.  But Coleman’s era had those guys too… plus the superstars in college. 

Freshman on average are better today than they were 20 years ago. But they aren’t better than 21-22 year NBA superstars staying in college because that was the norm. 

Anthony was a tremendous offensive threat, and fantastic at handling the ball, driving to the hoop.  Coleman could handle the ball, but that wasn’t his forte. But Coleman was much more dominating near the hoop than Anthony.  He was bigger, stronger, and had a freakish arm length.

Coleman was the better defensive player. He played center his junior year and had 127 blocks, a school record until Etan Thomas broke it 9 years later.  Anthony did his part in the zone defense, but he has never been known for his defensive prowess.

Anthony’s 2003 squad reached a peak ranking of #11, and started the year unranked. Coleman’s team got as high as #4.

Coleman’s biggest issue was that at times he was indifferent on the court, specifically against lesser opponents and earlier in this career. Anthony’s type A-personality never let him give up.  Coleman often played with a snarl, whereas Anthony always with a smile.  Coleman could be nasty on the court, whereas Anthony was more a quiet assassin and let his skills do the talking.  D.C. gave coach Jim Boeheim a lot of headaches; I doubt Melo ever game coach one.

Some will argue that Melo’s team won the championship and Coleman’s did not.  But do a flashback to both championship games the guys played in. Coleman missed a front end of a one-and-one in the final minute, and Keith Smart made a jump shot over Howard Triche resulting in the loss for Syracuse.  Anthony missed a front end of a one-and-one in the final minute, and Michael Lee’s jump shot is blocked by Hakim Warrick giving the win to Syracuse.  If Triche block’s Smart’s shot, and Lee makes his shot, the results are swapped. Do you still consider Melo better than D.C. in that scenario?  And your change in position is based on four players other than Melo and D.C. doing something?

I think if Melo stays in college for three years, definitely four, there is no comparison here.  Melo at 22 was a much better basketball player than D.C. was at 22.  But that Melo was not at Syracuse; he was in the NBA playing for Denver. And having watched both players play, Melo at 18 was not better than D.C. at 22.

It was tough to think through these selections.  Without out a doubt Derrick Coleman, Billy Owens, Carmelo Anthony, Rony Seikaly and John Wallace were great college players.  And no slight was intended to Pearl Washington, Sherman Douglas, Lawrence Moten, Wesley Johnson or Hakim Warrick.

Your thoughts?

The 1986-1987 Orangemen versus the 2002-2003 Orangemen

It is difficult to compare teams from different eras, as the game of basketball changes in terms of style, rules and size of the players. And yet, it can be an interesting exercise to go through.

The 1986-1987 Orangemen and the 2002-2003 Orangemen both played their National Championship games in New Orleans, with the final results differing. As Syracuse fans vividly know, 2003 was the lone NCAA National Championship, while 1987 was a heart breaking loss on a Keith Smart shot.

The two teams had a lot of similarities.  Both teams improved as the season went along, and were playing their best basketball during the NCAA tournament.  Both teams were of course coached by Jim Boeheim.  Both teams had leads in the NCAA Championship game, and struggled to make their free throws during the last minute. In both cases the star freshman forward (Derrick Coleman and Carmelo Anthony) missed the front end of a one-and-one that could have sealed the win.  In both cases a senior forward (Howard Triche and Kueth Duany) missed the front end of a one-and-one that could have also sealed the win.  The most clear difference in the championship game is that in 2003 Hakim Warrick blocked Michael Lee’s 3 point shot attempt, whereas Howard Triche could not cover Keith Smart’s 2 point shot. 

The two teams, however, were different in many ways. The 1987 team started the season ranked #15 in the country, and would rise to #5. They were 5-6 versus AP Top 20 teams, including three losses to Georgetown (including two classics).  They won the Big East Regular Season title, and lost in the BET Championship to the Hoyas.

The 2003 team started the year unranked and did not crack the top 25 until January 19^th; they would actually drop out of the top 25 again, and then return for the rest of the season on January 26^th.  The team was 7-2 versus AP Top 25 teams, and beat Georgetown three times. They would not win the Big East regular season title nor make it to the BET Championship game. 

The 1987 team had balanced scoring with five different players averaging 10+ points a game. Those five players also all scored 20 or more points in at least one game, and three of them (Triche, Sherman Douglas and Rony Seikaly) scored 30+ points in a game.  There were a lot of options for who would lead the team in scoring on a given night.

The 2003 team had four players scoring 10+ points a game.  Five different players did score 20 or more points in a game, but make no mistake about it, that Anthony was the alpha dog on scoring, and led the team in scoring most nights.

The 1987 team had more collegiate experience.  The starting five consisted of two seniors, a junior, a sophomore and a freshman.  2003 had one senior, two sophomores and two freshmen.

The 1987 Orangemen played both zone and man-to-man, along with a mix of full court press.  Zone defense was typically used in inbound situations in the half court, whereas man-to-man was used in normal routines.  Syracuse was comfortable pressing a lot utilizing Seikaly as the last line of defense if the press was broken.  The three point shot had just been introduced in 1987, and college teams in general were not geared towards preventing it.  Syracuse did play Providence, a Rick Pitino team that lived-and-died by the three point shot, and the Orangemen did beat them three times.  They did have problems with Steve Alford in the NCAA Championship with Alford hitting 7 of 10 attempts, though a few of those were on fast breaks where he pulled up and took the shot from the arc as the defender back pedaled.

In 2003 Syracuse was playing its vaunted zone defense almost exclusively, and the team played it very well by the season’s end.  Gerry McNamara was very good at picking off passes in the lane, and Duany made an intimidating guard at 6’5” at the top.  The back of the Syracuse zone was tall and long limbed with 6’8” Anthony, 6’8” Warrick and 7’0” Craig Forth.  Jeremy McNeil would offer a change of pace on defense, and was the shot blocking expert in the back line.  The three point shot had been well established by 2003, and the Orangemen were very good at closing out on perimeter shooters.

Offensively the 1987 Orangemen played an up tempo game, and loved to push the pace of the game.  Despite being up tempo, they did a decent job of not being too careless with the ball.  Sherman Douglas had a 2.4 assist to turnover ratio, and his backcourt mate Greg Monroe was even better at 2.9.

The Orangemen loved to score from the inside, relying on Seikaly and Coleman to pound the ball home.  Douglas was the master of the alley oop pass and he would lob the ball over defenses allowing the very athletic Seikaly, Coleman and Stephen Thompson to dunk the ball home.   Monroe was the only real three point threat, and he became very adept at it hitting 44% of his attempts.  Monroe basically camped out on the three point arc, and Douglas would drive and kick the ball back out to him.  Douglas was extremely good at driving the lane and putting up the soft floater, or dish off to the big mean down low.  The team was fortunate to have two pure point guards in Douglas and Monroe.

The 2003 Orangemen ran all of their offense through Carmelo Anthony.  Melo was the most gifted offensive freshman that Syracuse has ever had.  He had good ball handling skills, excellent moves to the hoop with a short jumper and a decent three point shot.  Billy Edelin became more integral into the team as the post season progressed, but the offense was run by Gerry McNamara.  GMac was not a true point guard, but he ran the offense well. He was a sniper with a reputation for making the clutch shots.  Warrick wasn’t a main threat on offense, but he got enough touches to become effective as the third option.  Duany was decent all around, and offered a very good third three point shooting options, behind GMac and Melo.  The team had a decent perimeter attack, and an alpha dog to run the offense through.

Both teams had an Achilles heal with their free throw shooting.  The best free throw shooter on each team was the point guard, which helped in close games.  Douglas hit 74% of his shots, while McNamara hit a blistering 91%.  For 1987, Monroe and Triche were okay, Coleman and Seikaly were marginal, and Thompson and Derek Brower, both from the bench were awful.

For 2003, Anthony was okay from the free throw, while Duany, Warrick and Edelin were marginal.  Forth, Josh Pace and Jeremy McNeil were terrible.

How would the two teams match up? 

Point Guard:  6’ Sherman Douglas versus 6’2” Gerry McNamara. Douglas is definitely the better point guard; we are talking about perhaps the best point guard in Syracuse history, and that’s no disrespect to McNamara.  Douglas was quicker, and would likely be able to drive past GMac.  GMac is clearly the better shooter, and the height advantage over Douglas would help him. The 1987 team, because they played a lot of man defense, may have put Monroe on McNamara.  That could backfire, however, because that meant that 6’ Douglas had to guard 6’5” Duany who was adept at hitting the three.  Stephen Thompson could come off the bench and help shutdown McNamara or Duany, but Thompson wasn’t an integral part of the offense in 1987.  Overall, edge to 1987.

Shooting Guard: 6’3” Greg Monroe versus 6’5” Kueth Duany.  Both were seniors.  Monroe was by far the better shooter and the better ball handler. He was very comfortable at running the offense when needed.  Duany would be the better defender and rebounder, and while Monroe was the better shooter, Duany was not a slouch.  If Billy Edelin came into the game and moved to the point, then Douglas would have had to guard him, and Edelin at 6’4”, who specialized in backing defenders into the paint, may have had a good time against Douglas.  In that scenario, Monroe would have been guarding McNamara.  Tough to call.  I would call it Even.

Small Forward:  6’5” Howard Triche versus 6’8” Carmelo Anthony.  Triche was a senior and a solid all around player, but there is no comparison here. Anthony, one of the greatest freshman players of all time, is significantly better than Triche.  Syracuse would likely have had Derrick Coleman guard Anthony in man defense, and that would have been very interesting.  Coleman was a decent shot blocker and at 6’11”, with a very long reach, Coleman would’ve been a tough matchup for Anthony.  I do think the offensive expertise of Anthony would have won out, but Coleman would have made him work for it.  The 1987 team likely would have had Triche attack the side of the zone that Anthony was on, and that would have pulled Anthony a little further out from the hoop, but not much.  Overall edge, 2003 by a lot.

Power Forward: 6’11” Derrick Coleman versus 6’8” Hakim Warrick.  Coleman was a raw offensive player in 1987, with very good hands and the ability to make the short jumper.  His greatest ability was to crash the boards for rebounds, and run the court.  Warrick was coming into his own by the end of the 2003 season, and had that explosive first step to the hoop.  Warrick would have had a tough time matching Coleman on defense, as Coleman’s height and reach would give him an advantage.  Warrick would have had Triche to beat defensively, and Warrick’s speed and size would have helped him a lot there, especially since Warrick played above the rim.  Overall edge, 1987.

Center: 6’10” Rony Seikaly versus 7’0” Craig Forth and 6’8” Jeremy McNeil.  Forth and McNeil split time at center, so that would give the 2003 Orangemen 10 fouls to use, and two big bodies to keep fresh against Seikaly.  Seikaly was definitely better than either Forth or McNeil. He was much more athletic, could run the court very well, and by the end of 1987 had developed a short jumper and some nice post moves.  Forth likely would have been the tougher assignment for Seikaly as he took up more space, and would make it tough for Seikaly to get to the hoop, whereas McNeil could be pulled out of position on the block attempts.  Seikaly handled centers much better than Forth/McNeil in the 1987 NCAA season run.  Forth and McNeil would offer very little offensive against Seikaly.  They both were limited offensively to begin with, and Seikaly was a premier shot blocker in his era.  The offensive liability of 2003 centers would allow Seikaly to cheat and defend against other 2003 players going to the hoop. Overall edge, 1987 by a lot.

Bench:  The 1987 team really went two players deep. Stephen Thompson was the backup shooting guard and small forwards, and specialized in defense and running out for passes on the fast break, as well as putting back loose balls for easy dunks and layups.  Derek Brower was the reserve big man, and he was a load in the middle. Not much of an offensive threat, but solid defensively.  The 2003 team had Josh Pace, the aforementioned Edelin, and McNeil. Pace would offer a good change of pace for the 2003 team, something that the 1987 team really did not have.  At 6’5” he would have a disadvantage against the tall 1987 front line, and Triche may have been able to take him on.  Overall edge goes to 2003.

Coaching: The 2003 Jim Boeheim was likely a better coach than the 1987 Boeheim.  Boeheim had 10 years of experience in 1987, whereas he had 26 in 2003.  Overall edge goes to 2003.

The big questions would be the following:

·         Could the 1987 team run the ball as much as they would want, or would the 2003 team be able to prevent it? If the 1987 team were able to run the ball, could the 2003 team keep up with them?

·         Could the 1987 team slow down Melo?  If they couldn’t, would they be able to contain the rest of the team enough so that Melo didn’t matter?

·         Could the 2003 team slow down Seikaly?

·         Could the 1987 team guard the three point shooting of the 2003 team?

·         Could the 2003 team handle the full court pressure of the 1987 team? 

In the end, I think the 2003 team would win the game.  I think the 2003 team could handle the full court pressure. Melo would be able to help bring the ball up court, and with him and Duany helping in that area, they would be able to move the ball over the press defense.

The 1987 team would have a tough time covering Duany or Edelin, whomever was playing the other guard position to McNamara.  I don’t think the 1987 team is going to stop Melo; they may slow him down but not enough.  The question would be how much could Seikaly help Coleman on defense.  If he could rotate over, he could have been very effective at stopping Melo.  Seikaly would probably have a big day offensively and defensively, but he would get quite a workout against Forth/McNeil, and lest we forget, Warrick and Anthony could collapse on defense and help double team.

Douglas would be very tough to stop on the penetration, and he would get his points and his assists.  Douglas was able to master the alley oop in the NBA, so he would get the pass off against anyone. 

f the game was close, I would not want to be either squad trying to protect the lead.  I am not one of those fans who believe that Syracuse won the 2003 title only because of Melo. It was a complete team effort throughout the playoffs. But in this hypothetical matchup of 1987 versus 2003, I think he does bring matchup problems, especially with Warrick at the other forward position.  And in the end I think 2002-2003 beats 1986-1987.

All-Syracuse International Team

Twenty five international players have played basketball for the Syracuse Orange.  Clinton Goodwin, a 5’8” guard born to American missionaries in Calcutta was the first in line.  Chino Obokoh, a reserve center for the Orange last season, is the latest in the line of international players.

Rony Seikaly

Rony Seikaly is probably the greatest international player for the Orange.  The 6’10” center helped power the Orangemen to the championship game in 1987.  He was an outstanding shot blocker and rebounder, and by his senior year had developed into a strong offensive threat.

Two early All-Americans for the Orangemen were born overseas. John Barsha was born in Russia, while Joe Schwarzer was born in Austro-Hungary.  The two partnered to lead the Orangemen to the 1918 National Championship (as voted by the Helms Foundation).  Schwarzer was a 5’11” center, considered the best center in the East, and Barsha was an outstanding defensive guard.  Due to the evolution of the game, both would probably be too small for today’s game, but they were outstanding athletes in their own era.

If I were to create an All-International team for the Orange, I would start with Seikaly at center. That’s probably the easiest selection to make.

The team wouldn’t have a true power forward, but I would put Montreal’s Kris Joseph in that position.  Joseph was very adept at driving to the hoop, and liked playing near the basket. He would be undersized, but speedy.

Leo Rautins

Toronto’s Leo Rautins would be an excellent small forward.  Rautins was a triple-double threat, a gifted passer who preferred to play away from the basket, and would be a good fit at the three position.

Freshman phenom Tyler Ennis would be my starting point guard.  He would ensure we have a controlled offense, and would keep the turnovers to a minus. With Ennis and Rautins both on the court, there would be lots of opportunities for low post passes to Seikaly and Joseph.

The shooting guard position is the toughest spot to fill.  It comes down to sharp shooting Marius Janulis versus the versatile Kueth Duany.  Janulis was a sniper on the perimeter, and a great free throw shooter. He was not a strong defender, and was merely adequate handling the ball, but he sure could shoot.  Duany was a very good three point shooter; not in the same class a Janulis, but he could make the open three when defenses focused on other players on the court.  Duany’s benefit to the team is that he was long armed, and played very good zone defense, along with being a decent rebounder and ball handler.  I would likely choose to start Duany, and have Janulis come off the bench. Duany could of course also rotate to small forward.   Both played in the national championship game with Duany getting the edge with the championship win.

Fab Melo would be my top reserve center, and he would be a solid defensive replacement to spell Seikaly. There would be an offensive letdown with Melo on the court, but Melo was a good passer, and the team would not be hurt having him on the defensive end.

My eighth player would be Donte’ Greene.  Greene was a 6’11” three point shooting power forward. I wasn’t always crazy about his game particularly because he tended to care more about what was in his best interest as opposed to the team, but having a tall gifted athlete come off the bench who could hit the long ball is an invaluable asset on the team. 

My ninth player would be Baye Moussa Keita, who would provide some much needed energy off the bench to back up Seikaly, and to replace Melo if Melo was indifferent that night. Keita was very limited offensively, but he could play inspired defense, and get key rebounds.

The tenth, and final, player on my team would be Tom Huggins.  Huggins was a forward for the Orangemen in the early 1950s.  Huggins was a mature player having been a veteran of World War II; he would be 28 when he graduated from Syracuse.  Huggins was a solid rebounder and a tenacious defender, and his maturity would help with some of the younger guys.

Finally, the coach would be Marc Guley. Guley was born in Czechoslovakia, and coached the Orangemen from 1950-1962.  Guley’s career started out well as a coach, leading the Orangemen to the National Campus Championship in 1951, and to their first NCAA bid in 1957.  The team would also hit rock bottom after a steady decline in Guley’s last few years.  However, as the Orangemen have had no other head coaches born overseas, the job is his by default.

So we’re looking at a starting five, with really an eight man rotation, as follows:

• PG-Tyler Ennis, 
• SG-Kueth Duany, 
• SF-Leo Rautins, 
• PF-Kris Joseph
• C-Rony Seikaly.
• Bench: G-Marius Janulis, F-Donte’ Greene and C-Fab Melo

That team would be an NCAA bound team in this era, and possibly an elite eight team, and with some luck a Final Four. A strong power forward on the team would make me more confident.  The team could definitely play big with Rautins taking over the point for periods of time, Duany at the shooting guard, Greene and Joseph up front, and Seikaly down low (or put Seikaly at forward, Melo at center, and drop Joseph).

OrangeHoops Hall of Fame 2013

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 four years saw the addition of Billy Owens (2008), Billy Gabor (2009), Lawrence Moten (2010), Louis Orr (2011), Roosevelt Bouie (2011) and John Wallace (2012).  So the list now stands at 11. Another year has passed, and now it is time for the 2013 inductee.

I established my rules for the OrangeHoops Hall of Fame back in 2007 and you can catch up on them here. 2013 does have six new eligible candidates (using the fifteen year rule): Marius Janulis, Todd Burgan, LaSean Howard, Sam Spann, Erik Frazier and Jason Mallin. 

Burgan is by far the best of that bunch.  He was a classic Syracuse mid size forward, able to play the shooting guard, small forward and power forward positions.  He is currently the 17th leading scorer in Syracuse history; he was a decent scorer, rebounder, ball handler, perimeter shooter and defender. Not great at anything but good across the board.  Janulis was one of the best spot up three point shooters in Syracuse history, making about 40% of his attempts.  He was a pure shooter, but not a strong ball handler or defender.  

LaSean Howard was a reserve swingman for two seasons at Syracuse. Unhappy with his playing time, he transferred to Hampton University after his sophomore year, where he would be an average player.  Spann was a reserve forward for one season at Syracuse playing in only 8 games, and would transfer to Fairfield University after his freshman year.  Frazier and Mallin were both walk-ons.  Though Burgan was a talented player, I don't think he is at the top of the list for Hall of Fame consideration. 

I think this year’s viable top candidates come down to the following ten, listed chronologically: Lew Castle, Joe Schwarzer, Lew Andreas, Vinnie Cohen, Leo Rautins, Stephen Thompson, Rony Seikaly and John Wallace.

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.

Schwarzer was a two time All-American, and was captain and leading scorer of the 1917-1918 squad that went 16-1 and was retroactively named the National Champions by the Helms Foundation.

Andreas coached Syracuse basketball for 27 seasons, including the 19-1 1925-1926 squad that was awarded the Helms Foundation National Championship. He had a career record of 358-134, and he was the Syracuse Athletic Director for 28 years (1937-1964).

Cohen was an All-American, the first Syracuse player to average 20+ points a game in a season, and led the team to the NCAA Elite Eight in 1956-1957.

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.

Thompson was an explosive swingman, with incredible quickness and vertical leap, and excellent defensive skills. He was extremely adept at playing above the basket though he was only about 6'2". He teamed with Sherman Douglas to perfect the alley-oop basket.  Thompson was an extremely proficient scorer, despite the fact he was a terrible perimeter shooter.  

Seikaly was an All-American, a standout defensive player whose outstanding play in the 1987 NCAA tournament took Syracuse to the brink of its first tournament championship.

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.

I have got to go with Rony Seikaly for the 2013 selection.  Seikaly came to Syracuse as a raw talent with very little basketball skills other than a tomahawk dunk.  Despite that, Jim Boeheim took advantage of his athletic ability and size and immediately inserted him into the starting lineup his freshman year.  Seikaly would develop into a solid defensive threat his sophomore season, but it was not until midway through his junior season that he started to become a solid all around center.

It was likely Seikaly's improved play, more than anything else, that helped propel Syracuse's run through the NCAA tournament in 1987, allowing Syracuse to advance to the National Championship game.  Seikaly would take on Florida's fame Duane Schintzius in the NCAA tournament.  Seikaly would shut down Schintzius, while scoring 33 points himself.

Seikaly would lead the team in scoring his senior year, no small feat on a team loaded with talent in Sherman Douglas, Derrick Coleman and Stephen Thompson.  He would earn 2nd Team Big East honors his junior and senior seasons, and at the time his career ended, he was the 4th leading scorer in Syracuse history and the 2nd leading rebounder.  He would be the 9th pick of the 1988 NBA draft, and would have a solid NBA career.   He would finish his Syracuse career as arguably the greatest center Syracuse ever had.

Congratulations to Rony Seikaly.

Orange Hoops Hall of Fame 2012

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 four years saw the addition of Billy Owens (2008), Billy Gabor (2009), Lawrence Moten (2010), Louis Orr (2011) and Roosevelt Bouie (2011).  So the list now stands at 10. Another year has passed, and now it is time for the 2012 inductee.

I established my rules for the OrangeHoops Hall of Fame back in 2007 and you can catch up on them here. 2012 does have five new eligible candidates (using the fifteen year rule): Otis Hill, Jason Cipolla, Donovan McNabb, Ramel Lloyd, and Evan Vogel. Hill is the best of the bunch; a solid center who developed a good inside game, and was a good defender. He was a good college player, but not a Hall of Fame player.  Cipolla was a junior college transfer who was good at shooting the three point shot and he made some clutch shots during the 1996 NCAA tournament.  McNabb was a star on the Syracuse football field, and would go onto stardom in the NFL; he was a reserve guard on the basketball team.  Lloyd and Vogel were bench players who would transfer after the 1996-1997 season.

I think this year’s viable top candidates come down to the following eight, listed chronologically: Lew Castle, Joe Schwarzer, Lew Andreas, Vinnie Cohen, Rony Seikaly and John Wallace.

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.

Schwarzer was a two time All-American, and was captain and leading scorer of the 1917-1918 squad that went 16-1 and was retroactively named the National Champions by the Helms Foundation.

Andreas coached Syracuse basketball for 27 seasons, including the 19-1 1925-1926 squad that was awarded the Helms Foundation National Championship. He had a career record of 358-134, and he was the Syracuse Athletic Director for 28 years (1937-1964).

Cohen was an All-American, the first Syracuse player to average 20+ points a game in a season, and led the team to the NCAA Elite Eight in 1956-1957.

Seikaly was an All-American, a standout defensive player whose outstanding play in the 1987 NCAA tournament took Syracuse to the brink of its first tournament championship.

Wallace was a four year starter at Syracuse, carried the team to the National Championship game his senior season in 1995-1996. He graduated Syracuse as the #3 all-time leading scorer and the #3 all-time leader in rebounds, and still holds both distinctions.

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.

I have got to go with John Wallace for the 2012 selection.  Wallace had four solid seasons at Syracuse, and chose to honor his scholarship though the Orangemen would be on probation his freshman year (1992-1993).  He would play and start every game during his career, leading the Orangemen in rebounding each of his four seasons.

Wallace would improve during each of his seasons on the Hill. He had an opportunity to go to the NBA after his junior season, but decided to return his senior year. That was a very fortuitous move for Syracuse, as he would lead the Orangemen to the NCAA National Championship game.  Wallace would average 22.2 points a game for the season, combined with 8.7 rebounds.  He had worked on his perimeter game over the summer, and would hit 42% (37 of 88) of his three point shots. Five times his senior year he would score over 30 points in a game, none bigger than the 30 he put up against Georgia in the NCAA tournament; Wallace hit a game winning 3 point shot in overtime to win that game.  He would score 29 points against Kentucky in the title game, before fouling out late in the game.

Wallace was the 18th pick in the 1996 NBA draft by the New York Knicks.  He would play in the NBA from 1996 to 2004.  Congrats to John Wallace.

Melo's Sophomore Surprise

Fab Melo had a dominating defensive effort against Seton Hall last night, something Syracuse fans have waited for just over a year. Melo delivered more than anyone could have expected with a school record 10 blocks, coupled with 12 points (a career high). More importantly, he helped hold Seton Hall’s star center Herb Pope to 4 points, and the entire starting front line for the Pirates struggled to score against the Syracuse defense, getting only 13 points on 5 of 26 shooting.

Melo has definitely improved this year from last. He’s playing nearly 23 minutes a game this year versus only 10 last year. His scoring is up to 6.8 ppg, and rebounding 5.5, along with 2.9 blocks per game. Melo is making 53% of his field goal attempts, and following a strong Syracuse tradition of struggling at the free throw line hitting only 54%.

How does he compare to other sophomore centers at Syracuse? The average sophomore Syracuse center since 1965-1966, including bench players, shoots 53.4% from the floor, 58.8% from the free throw line, has 5.8 ppg and 4.8 rpg. This is based on 759 games played by true centers (i.e. not forwards who played some center) as sophomores.

The better standard is how is Fab Melo doing compared to the top 10 scoring sophomore centers in Orange history:

Bill Smith stands above the rest as a sophomore in terms of offensive production. At 6’11”, Smith was much taller than most his opponents in that era, and he was able to dominate offensively with 19 ppg and 11.6 rpg. As dominating as Smith was, Syracuse only went 9-16 his sophomore year.

Etan Thomas and Roosevelt Bouie were probably the best all-around sophomore centers, both known more for their defensive presence than their offense, though they both did score double digits.

Arinze Onuaku, whom I have thought has always been highly underrated at Syracuse, actually was the third best scorer with 12.7 ppg, and 8.1 rpg combined with a 62.8% from the floor.

Wayne Ward was a highly thought of center with a strong body and nice shooting touch. He would get into some legal problems after his sophomore season, and leave school, thus ending a promising career.

Danny Schayes makes the top ten even though he backed up Roosevelt Bouie. Jim Boeheim toyed with playing with two centers to get Schayes on the court more, but that experiment failed.

The rest of the list consists of three undersized but muscular hustling centers: Bob Dooms, Otis Hill, and Andre Hawkins.

Bouie was the only one of the group to score in double figures his freshman year. Smith, Dooms and Ward played in an era where freshman did not play on the varsity. Seikaly, Thomas, Hawkins and Hill played a lot their freshman seasons, but were in a lot of foul trouble and were raw. Schayes was on the bench, as was Onuaku. Onuaku has the numbers closest to Melo’s freshman year. Like Melo, Onuaku had a lot to learn about conditioning and he greatly improved in that area each year in school.

Melo has already improved a lot from last year. I would not expect him to average double figures in scoring for the season, even as he continue to improve. The schedule is getting tougher, and more importantly, Syracuse has a very deep squad with a lot of players who can score. There just is not going to be the need for him to score that much each and every game.  However, I would expect him to score in double digits a few times this year, and would not be surprised to see a 20 point effort pop up.  I would love to see some double digit rebounding efforts.

 

Melo will likely move into the top 10 scoring for sophomore centers, ending the year somewhere between Bob Dooms and Roosevelt Bouie in terms of points; playing in 35+ games helps you that way. 

 

My hat off to Melo for the effort last night. Hopefully the first of many!

 

2011 OrangeHoops Hall of Fame Selection

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 three years saw the addition of  Billy Owens (2008),  Billy Gabor (2009) and Lawrence Moten (2010).  So the list now stands at 9. Another year has passed, and now it is time for the 2011 inductee.

I established my rules for the OrangeHoops Hall of Fame back in 2007 and  you can catch up on them here. 2011 does have eight new eligible candidates (using the fifteen year rule): John Wallace, Lazarus Sims, J.B. Reafsnyder, David Patrick, Bobby Lazor, Elimu Nelson, Jim Hayes and Jim May. Wallace is a solid candidate, definitely one of the top Syracuse players of all time, and carried Syracuse his senior season to lofty heights. Sims was an outstanding point guard his senior season and helped lead the Orangemen to the National Championship game, but he was just a one year starter.  Reafsnyder shared the center duties with Otis Hill, while Nelson, Hayes and May were bench players. Patrick and Lazor would both transfer to bigger and better things at other schools.

 

I think this year’s viable top candidates come down to the following eight, listed chronologically: Lew Castle, Joe Schwarzer, Lew Andreas, Vinnie Cohen, Roosevelt Bouie, Louis Orr, Rony Seikaly and John Wallace.

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.

Schwarzer was a two time All-American, and was captain and leading scorer of the 1917-1918 squad that went 16-1 and was retroactively named the National Champions by the Helms Foundation.

 

Lew Andreas coached Syracuse basketball for 27 seasons, including the 19-1 1925-1926 squad that was awarded the Helms Foundation National Championship. He had a career record of 358-134, and he was the Syracuse Athletic Director for 28 years (1937-1964).

Cohen was an All-American, the first Syracuse player to average 20+ points a game in a season, and led the team to the NCAA Elite Eight in 1956-1957.

Bouie was a two time All-American, a standout defensive player who led Syracuse to a 100-18 record in his four years, and part of the famed Louie N’ Bouie tandom that rocketed Syracuse up the polls in the early Jim Boeheim years.

Orr was an All-American his senior year, a talented offensive player who played with intelligence on the court. He was the other half of the famed Louie N’ Bouie tandom.

Seikaly was an All-American, a standout defensive player whose outstanding play in the 1987 NCAA tournament took Syracuse to the brink of its first tournament championship.

Wallace was a four year starter at Syracuse, carried the team to the National Championship game his senior season in 1995-1996.  He graduated Syracuse as the #3 all-time leading scorer and the #3 all-time leader in rebounds, and still holds both distinctions.

It is hard to believe some of these candidates still have not made the OrangeHoops Hall of Fame.  But I designed the criteria so that the selection would be very difficult, and only the best of the best would be represented.  And what good are rules if you do not follow them?

That was not entirely a rhetorical question for in 2011 I am going to break one of my own rules, and induct two players into the Hall of Fame.  And I have to, because you cannot induct one half of the Bouie 'N Louie show without the other.   The 2011 inductees are Roosevelt Bouie and Louis Orr.

Syracuse had a new basketball coach for the 1976-1977 in Jim Boeheim.  He had recruited Roosevelt Bouie as an assistant, and sent assistant coach Rick Pitino to recruit Louis Orr. The two players, under Boeheim, would take Syracuse to a new level of consistent success, and establish Syracuse as an Eastern basketball power, eventually leading to the formation of the Big East Conference.

 

Syracuse would go 26-4, 22-6, 26-4 and 26-4 for an overall record of 100-18 during the Bouie N' Louie era.  They would win the inaugural Big East Regular Season championship, and would rise to #2 in the AP polls their senior year.  

 

Roosevelt Bouie was a fierce defensive player with tremendous shot blocking skills. He was very athletic and could run the court very well, allowing the Orangemen to thrive in their fast break offense favored by Boeheim.  Bouie would graduate from Syracuse as the #2 all-time leading scorer, third in rebounding, and first in blocked shots (since surpassed in all three areas).   Bouie would be drafted in the second round of the NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks. He felt the Maverick's contract was not good enough and kept up on his promise to go and play in Italy.  Bouie found that he loved the lifestyle in Italy, the pay was very good, and he never came back to the NBA, having a long and outstanding career in the Italian league.  

Louis Orr was a thin rail of a player who was excellent at running the court, and grabbing rebounds.  He was a valuable sixth man his freshman season, and scored 9.4 points per game off the bench.  He would move into the starting lineup his sophomore season, and continued to improve.  Like Bouie, he was named to the Big East First Team its inaugural season 1979-1980.  Orr would be drafted in the first round of the 1980 NBA draft by the Indiana Pacers.  He would have eight solid, though unspectacular, seasons in the NBA.

Orr would later turn to coaching, and was an assistant coach at Syracuse under Boeheim, along with being the head coach at Providence, Siena, Seton Hall and Bowling Green. In 2002-2003 he would be named the Big East Coach of the Year while at Seton Hall.

Congratulations to that inseparable due, Louis Orr and Roosevelt Bouie.

2010 Results After Two

Congratulations to Coach Jim Boeheim for this 831st career winning, giving him sole possession of the title of 5th all-time winningnest NCAA Div I basketball coach.

And congrats to the Syracuse football team for its 7th win, making the team bowl eligible for the first time since 2004, and guaranteeing their first winning season since 2001. All of this with two games left on the schedule.

Syracuse basketball is 2-0, and the team is starting to show its character for the year, with a solid win over a good mid-major program (Northern Iowa) and a win over one of its easier local teams (Canisius). Both games involved a tight first half, with a solid defensive effort throughout the game, and a explosive run to start the second half.

Rick Jackson showed us today the reminder of how well he can play when focused with a 17 point, 13 rebound effort againt Canisius. We do have to remember that he has shown that ability before and then disappeared, but it is a good early sign. Brandon Triche seems to be fitting in comfortable with his shooting guard role, hitting 4 of 9 three point shots. And I always like having a shooting guard who can also play the point.

Scoop Jardine had 8 assists today which puts a smile on my face; I wish he had taken less than 19 shots from the field in the first two games. I always like the point guard to pass first, shoot later, particularly early in the game as to involve his teammates. 12 assists and only three turnovers so far is excellent news.

C.J. Fair and Dion Waiters are showing signs they will be pushing for their share of playing time, and Mookie Jones and James Southerland look like they want to both earn the title as designated three point shooter off the bench. So there may be some good depth, though I think it may be situational.

The Orange have also shown that they are staying committed to executing the Syracuse zone defense. I think that may be the most positive of all the good news so far.

The center position is going to be interesting. Fab Melo is having a ton of foul problems early in this season, having fouled out of both games after a combined playing time of 31 minutes. Fouling out in 13 minutes against a much smaller Canisius is something that I hope is a good learning experience for the freshman. It is tough to tell really how good he may be with the limited playing time.

Baye Moussa Keita has played rather impressively in his reserve role. The freshman pulled down 15 rebounds against the Griffins earlier today, in only 17 minutes of play. That is the most rebounds by an Orangeman since Paul Harris had 16 rebounds against Stephen F. Austin in the 2009 NCAA tournament. Keita did manage to foul out of the Northern Iowa opener in 18 minutes of play, a rather impressive feat for both SU centers to pull in the same game. But I am impressed with the early showing of Keita, and having some early signs of strong potential for him is excellent news as it looks like Melo will definitely be getting some bench time this season due to his foul troubles. Bernie Fine is definitely going to have his work cut out for him. I had hoped to find an early career parallel with Rony Seikaly. But Seikaly, even as foul prone has he was as a freshman, managed to not foul out of either of his first two games, against two quality opponents, Georgia Tech and DePaul. Seikaly played 32 minutes with 3 fouls in his first game, and 29 minutes with 4 fouls in his second.

This is the type of season where the non-conference schedule becomes vitally important for the Syracuse freshman to learn how to play the college game, make the adjustments to the officiating and to the speed of the game.

Freshman Centers on the Hill

Freshman have been eligible to play NCAA Division I basketball since the 1973-1974 season. The first freshman center to start for Syracuse was in Coach Jim Boeheim’s first season 1976-1977. It was a notable freshman center with Roosevelt Bouie starting all 30 games that season, and Syracuse running to a remarkable 26-4 record, before bowing out of the NCAA tournament in the 2nd round.

In the Boeheim era, there have been six freshman who were the starting centers the majority of their first year on the Hill. In chronological order they are Bouie, Andre Hawkins, Rony Seikaly, Otis Hill, Jeremy McNeil and Craig Forth. Fab Melo looks to be number seven on that list.

The results for those first year freshman centers is mixed. All have been unpolished offensive players, to a variety of different degrees. Some were strong defensive presences their first season with their shot block ability, while others looked to plug a hole.

Bouie was by far the best freshman center at Syracuse, and at 6’11” he was highly recognizable on the court. Although he was not a solid offensive player, he could run the court and score inside, making 54% of his shots. He was not adept at drawing fouls that season, getting to the line only 55 times, but he made a remarkable 84% of his attempts (remarkable because he would be a career 66% free throw shooter). Bouie would struggle with fouls all four years at Syracuse, but he managed to play 25 minutes a game his freshman year, and had a respectable 10.9 ppg and 8.1 rpg. His big difference on the court was his 91 blocked shots, which set a defensive tone for the Orangemen, on their way to a 26-4 record.

Andre Hawkins would be the next freshman center at Syracuse. At 6’6”, 240 lbs, Hawkins was counted on to plug the hole in the middle resulting from the graduation of Danny Schayes. Hawkins was a bruiser inside, but he had limited offensive skills, and with no height was not much of a defensive threat. Hawkins would make 62% of his limited shots, for a 5.6 ppg average, and had only 3.9 rpg. Hawk struggled with fouls all season, and the Orangemen struggled to their worst season under Coach Boeheim at 16-13.

Rony Seikaly came onto the scene in 1984-1985, and at 6’10”, 235 lbs, he made his defensive presence know immediately. Seikaly would have 59 blocked shots his freshman year, score 8.1 ppg, and pull down 6.4 rpg. His offensive skills were limited to a tomahawk dunk, and he made about 54% of his shot attempts. Seikaly did redshirt his true freshman year, so he had one season of practice under his belt when he did start. He struggled with fouls, being disqualified from 11 of the 31 games he would play, averaging 25 minutes per game. Seikaly was important enough to the squad that his presence moved senior Andre Hawkins from center to power forward. Syracuse would finish 22-9 and go to the NCAA tournament.

Otis Hill was the next freshman center in 1993-1994. Hill was built like Hawkins, though a little bit bigger at 6’8”, 235 lbs. Hill was very foul prone, fouling out of 10 games, and averaging 24 minutes per game. When he did play, he managed 7.9 ppg, along with 5.6 rpg, and had 42 blocked shots. Hill was a bruiser inside, but also had some passing skills with 36 assists. He did beat out sophomore J.B. Reafsnyder for the starting position. Syracuse would go 23-7 that season; it didn’t hurt that the Orangemen had the talented Lawrence Moten and John Wallace on the squad.

Next was Jeremy McNeil in 2000-2001. McNeil was probably the least skilled offensive player of the six mentioned, with all of his shots being dunk attempts or put-backs near the hoop. He would make 65% of his shots from the close proximity. McNeil at 6’8”, 257 lbs, loved to block shots, and was extremely foul prone while trying to do that. He would end up with 65 blocked shots, but also play only 16 minutes a game with 103 fouls and 10 disqualifications. McNeil would average only 2.5 ppg along with 3.2 rpg, and junior Billy Celuck spent a lot of time relieving him.

Craig Forth would arrive on the scene the next season (2001-2002) and would replace McNeil as the starting center. Forth, at 7’, was a completely different style of player from McNeil. Forth was a very passive natured player, whereas McNeil was ultra-aggressive. Forth was good at passing the ball (41 assists), and unlike most of the freshman centers for Syracuse, did not mind stepping away from the hoop (he made only 44% of his field goal attempts). Forth was adept at using his wide body to fill up the middle of the zone, and box out apposing offensive players, which made him far more attractive to Coach Jim Boeheim and his zone defense. Forth would average only 4.6 ppg, along with 4.5 rpg, as Syracuse went 23-13 and lost in the NIT Final Four.

There were some other notable freshman centers. Danny Schayes, in 1977-1978, was a decent offensive player in terms of basic skills. He unfortunately had to sit behind sophomore Roosevelt Bouie. Schayes would average 4.7 ppg and 4.0 rpg that year.

Richie Manning was a decent freshman player in 1988-1989, who may have started for a lot of teams. But he entered an extremely talented squad that saw junior All-American Derrick Coleman shift to center so that freshman sensation Billy Owens could make the starting lineup. There were not too many minutes for Manning to pick up, but in the 10 minutes a game he go, he did average 3.4 ppg and 1.8 rpg. Manning, at 6’11”, 253 lbs, was a solid offensive player, who needed more work on the defensive end of the court. Despite playing only 10 minutes a game, he picked up 61 fouls, or one every 5.7 minutes of play.

Etan Thomas is the other freshman center of note. Thomas sat behind senior Otis Hill and sophomore Elvir Ovcina, yet due to injuries on the team, and his own improved play, he would start 12 games and average 16 minutes a game. Thomas was an excellent shot blocker getting 48 blocks in his limited playing time, and scoring 5.7 ppg with 4.2 rpg. The team would struggle going 19-13, and went 8-4 in the 12 games he started.

2010-2011 has Syracuse looking at starting 7’ freshman phenom Fab Melo. DaShonte Riley may have fought him for that position originally, but with Riley’s injury, it looks like Melo will be the seventh freshman center for Syracuse. Like all the other freshman centers, he is a raw offensive talent, with a lot of defensive potential. Like Bouie, Seikaly and McNeil, he will be counted on at times to alter a game with his shot blocking skills. Melo is probably the most highly touted center coming to Syracuse since Roosevelt Bouie, which puts him in very good company. Then again, there is a lot for a freshman to learn.

Syracuse did very well with Bouie at center, but he is the exception. The other teams with freshman centers have been average Syracuse NCAA caliber squads, to NIT quality squads. Freshman basketball players have a lot to learn, and centers are usually far less polished than guards and forwards. Their size does allow them to make some immediate contributions, but history also tells us that they struggle to stay on the court because of a tendency to be in foul trouble. On a Syracuse team that will not have a lot of depth at center, that could be bad news. Senior Rick Jackson will surely move from his forward positions at times and play center giving Melo a breather, as will fellow freshman Baye Moussa Keita.

I am hoping Melo is the next Bouie. Even a Seikaly level season would be good for this squad which will have talent and experience in other positions. It is tough to tell how good Melo will be. As many of you know, I am not one to jump on the recruiting hype machine, rather waiting to see what develops. I am eager to see how it all plays out.

Syracuse University has had its share of great players, though the Orangemen are probably more noted for the great point guards and forwards they have had. The Orangemen have had a few great centers along the way. Arinze Onuaku, who finished his career this past season, is clearly one of the top Syracuse centers ever. But how good was he in comparison? Who was the best?

That is a tough question, for a variety of reasons. The center position has changed more than any other position over the history of the game. In the early 1900s the center was the primary focal point of the offense. He did a majority of the ball handling and playmaking, along with often being the primary scorer. Centers in this era were often the best athlete on the court, and were about 5’11 to 6’2”.

In the late 1920s the game was evolving so that ‘big men’, players at 6’3”, were in the center position. This was a necessity as there was a jump ball after every made basket in the game. By the early 1930s there were teams who had centers whose primary purpose was to win the jump ball. Syracuse’s coach Lew Andreas, was a leading proponent of eliminating the jump ball after each basket, exactly for that reason, and by 1936 they had successfully eliminate that rule.

Height was still becoming a factor for centers, but the arrival of George Mikan in the 1940s, showed the dominance of a truly talented big man, and then the emergence of giants Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell in the 1950s, changed the center position forever. Russell introduced the concept of an absolute dominating defensive force, while Chamberlain brought the unstoppable offensive machine.

The center position probably has more players than any other position that has young men with very raw, if limited skills as freshman, who develop into outstanding players by their senior year. This is due to a combination of the tall centers having to wait for their bodies to catch up to their height, as well as finding it significantly different to be a giant among teens in high school, to being a giant among peers in college. So when you evaluate the greatness of a center at college, are you evaluating how he performed over his entire career, or how he performed his last year?

I am going to evaluate centers in the context of today’s center, with all due apologies to the disservice to Joe Schwarzer and Lew Castle, two outstanding All-Americans, who were clearly the best all around basketball players on their teams. Today they would have been great guards; and their style of play even in their era would have been more similar to today’s guard than center.

I am going to ignore forwards such as Derrick Coleman, Marty Byrnes and Chuck Richards, who each played center for a season out of necessity, but are far more remembered for their outstanding forward play.

So who is in my top 10? My apologies to the following fine centers who did not make that list: Andre Hawkins, Mookie Watkins, Conrad McRae, Royce Newell, and LeRon Ellis. Ed Sonderman was the first true athletic big center at Syracuse. He was 6’6”, weighed about 210 lbs, and played from 1935-1937. He was a strong offensive force, and is considered the top Syracuse big man of the first half century. But Sonderman did not make the top 10.

At #10 is Ed Miller (1950-1952). Miller came to Syracuse as a very awkward moving 6’8” teen, and he improved steadily over his three years on varsity. Miller would be second in scoring on the team his first two years, and lead the team in scoring his senior year. He helped Syracuse get to the NIT tournament in 1950 (very prestigious at the time), and win the National College Championship Tournament in 1951. Miller would be the first Syracuse player ever to score 40 points in a game.

#9 is Jon Cincebox (1957-1959). Cincebox was an outstanding rebounder in his era, averaging 14.6 rebounds a game, and setting the school record for total rebounds, that would not be broken for 30 years until Coleman came along. Cincebox sported a crew cut, was a master of the hook shot, and helped Syracuse to the Elite Eight his sophomore season.

At #8 is Otis Hill (1994-1997). Hill was a burly center who played a rugged inside game and was foul prone his entire career. As a freshman his offensive repertoire consisted of a dunk shot. His junior season, his strong play in the middle was helpful in Syracuse reaching the Final Four, and he was second in the team in scoring behind John Wallace, even though he played only 24 minutes a game. By his senior year he had developed a nice 10 foot jump shot, and was one of the primary offensive weapons on the team.

#7 is one Dave Bing’s teammates, Rick Dean (1965-1967). Otis Hill’s style was considered reminiscent of Dean, who has played 30 years earlier. Dean was 6’6”, 230 lbs, but could still run the court in Syracuse’s up style offense of the 1960s. Dean had a nice 10 foot jumper, was a very good free throw shooter (he shot 81% his junior season, and 76% his senior). Dean would average 18 ppg and 9 rebounds his senior year.

#6 is Arinze Onuaku (2006-2010). Onuaku was huge man in the middle at 6’9”, 255 lbs, and he sported a very muscular body. Onuaku played the middle of the zone defense extremely effectively; he was not a shot blocker, but was outstanding at maintaining his position, and keeping offensive players away from the hoop. He had a severe knee injury his sophomore season, and while he would rehabilitate the knee, he would continue to have leg issues in his career that limited his playing time. Offensively, Onuaku knew his limits, and stayed within his range, never more than 5 feet from the hoop. He was extremely effective in that short range, particularly with his hook shot, and is the most accurate shooter in Syracuse history at 64.8%. The two big knocks on Onuaku was that he was the worst free throw shooter in Syracuse history (by far), and he did not always hustle back down the court defensively.

#5 is Bill Smith (1969-1971). Smith was a tempormental giant at 6’11”, who was an outstanding rebounder and scorer (12.9 rpg, 20.7 ppg). He possessed a nice 10 foot jump shot, and was extremely effective near the hoop (59.6%). He holds the Syracuse single game scoring record with 47 points, against Lafayette. I’d rate Smith higher except that the level of competition for Syracuse in his era was less than today’s, and Syracuse was 9-16 and 12-12 his first two seasons.

#4 is Danny Schayes (1978-1981). Schayes was a very good college center who had the unfortunate situation of being a year behind Roosevelt Bouie. Coach Jim Boeheim tried Schayes at forward, in an effort to get him playing time earlier in his career, but it was not a position well suited for Schayes. He was probably the most fundamentally sound big man in Syracuse history. A decent ball handler, with excellent passing skills, outstanding free throw shooting (80.6% for his career), and solid from the floor (55.4%).

#3 is Etan Thomas (1997-2000). Thomas was probably the best defensive center in Syracuse history. He was a great shot blocker, and was named the Big East Defensive player of the year twice. He developed into a solid inside scorer, making 60% of his shots. He was a solid, but not great rebounder. Thomas was also a solid ball handler, not prone to turnovers, and finished his career as Syracuse’s all time shot blocker with 424 blocked shots.

The #1 and #2 picks are very tough. The candidates are Roosevelt Bouie and Rony Seikaly, and this gets back to how do you want to evaluate them. Bouie was much better over four years, Seikaly much better his senior year.

Ultimately, I go with Bouie as #2. If Etan Thomas was not the best defensive center at Syracuse, Roosevelt Bouie surely was. Part of the famous Louie N’ Bouie show, Bouie was a star his freshman year. He was a tremendous shot blocker, and could run the court well, which made him well suited for Syracuse’s fast break offense. Bouie made a high percentage of his field goal shots (he held the record until Onuaku broke it this year), and he was a very good rebounder. When he graduated from Syracuse he was the #2 all time scorer for Syracuse (long since surpassed). Bouie and Louis Orr brought the Syracuse basketball program to National attention and to initial prominence in the Big East.

#1 goes to Rony Seikaly. Seikaly came to Syracuse as a novice to basketball, having only recently learned the game after playing years of soccer in Greece. He would redshirt one year, and even in his freshman year he was overweight, and had only one shot, a tomahawk dunk, that he did not always make. He was extremely foul prone, fouling out of 1/3 of his games. But he improved over the years. He worked himself into great shape, learned to run up and down the court on both offensive and defense, and became a terrific shot blocker. His junior season, he started to play consistently with intensity and passion, and led Syracuse to the National Championship game against Indiana. Seikaly would develop a nice 10-15 foot jump shot his senior year, and would be a dominating offense force most of the season, despite sharing the ball with Stephen Thompson, Coleman and Sherman Douglas.

I’m not going to argue with anyone if they choose Bouie as #1. Perhaps tomorrow I will too.