October 19, 2005
I can already see Otto doing somersaults (Part 1)
As we near the end of October there's only one thing my mind, and it has nothing to do with 1917 or a 97 year-old Cy Young candidate. I'm currently unable to pay attention to such matters, as my gag reflex still kicks in when I think about them, making it difficult to breathe. Instead, I've been trying to focus my attention elsewhere:
Basketball.
NCAA basketball, really. Gerry McNamara's jumpshot. Darryl Watkins' post presence and Josh Wright's acceleration. The Devendorf kid - is he really the Big East Rookie of the Year, as Jimmy B claims, or just a Jason Williams knock-off? I even spent most of the ALCS trying to decide if I should get season tickets simply because it is probably the last year I'll see Mike Hopkins on the SU side of the scorers' table.
There's another reason to be thinking about Syracuse basketball this month, though. More than any other season in the Modern Syracuse Basketball Era, the team's immediate future is in doubt (the Modern Era being defined as every minute that has passed since Billy Edelin first mentioned the words 'upstate' and 'Wegman's' to his buddy Carmelo). I have thought about this during the painful (and many) months since Vermont's talkshow host/head coach was doing his victory jig on the sidelines, and I truly cannot figure this team out. As Jay Bilas would love to say, the team has "Tremendous Upside Potential" but the current members have yet to really show us anything. McNamara's great - potentially going to be my favorite SU player of alltime - but he can't win all the games for them. Who is going to step up? The class of 2007 seems to be the primary candidates in this discussion, as they have been since arriving on campus 2 years ago. Will Terrence Roberts be able to replace Hak? Can McCroskey and Nichols come up with a few 3's when Gerry's gassed? Who will pick up where Josh Pace left off? Will Watkins have the dominating presence we haven't seen since the Dave Siock years? Aside from the last one, (although Siock had a great haircut) the answers are no, nope, and no one.A few points regarding the '05-'06 Orange(men):
1. Last year I was convinced that Roberts is going to the NBA when he's done here. I'm sticking with that statement, although he only averaged 5 points and 4 rebounds per game at the Under 21 World Championships this summer. He's the athletic presence they need underneath, and should boost his averages up to 12 and 8 this year. Unfortunately, he still won't be an upgrade at the position. Syracuse may never see a player that can alter the outcome of a game with the dunk as much as Hakim Warrick. He will be the Rookie most fun to watch during the NBA season.2. Edelin is officially gone, citing personal reasons again. It's strange that he may be the single person most responsible for the current and future success of the team, yet he has left as its greatest underachiever. Carmelo would never have come if Billy didn't do it first, and most of the current recruits wouldn't have committed without Carmelo (more on this in Part 2).
3. I'm only going to say it once, because I don't want to repeat myself all season long. Louie McCroskey and Demetrius Nichols stink. It can be truly painful at times to watch either of them play. You can bet that there will be numerous articles in the paper throughout the season about how neither are providing the team with the perimeter game needed to alleviate the pressure on Gerry. I predict that they will be splitting time with each other the whole year, averaging 7 points/game between the two of them. They haven't matured yet, and I don't see any reason why they will this year. If they don't pick it up soon, 13 months from now neither will have a chance at starting again.
4. Darryl Watkins is sporting a new hairstyle and a job as the starting post man this year. According to his original recruiting reviews, he's a natural scorer from the center position, having netted 53 points once during a game in his senior year of high school. Syracuse will get significant point production from the center position again, something we haven't seen since before The Craiggers Years. It'll be fun to see if Watkins can live up to the Otis Hill-J.B. Reafsnyder legacy, much as Etan Thomas did in his day.
5. After hearing some of Boeheim's comments, I'm looking forward to see what freshman Eric Devendorf can do. I watched him in the McDonald's All-American game and it seemed like he was missing the safety on his trigger hand. Meanwhile, Syracuse product/future Duke star Greg Paulus looked twice as good playing the point, dishing assists and just running his team with confidence - the pre-season polls are guaranteed to put Duke at number 1, and they'll be right to do so.Although I have great faith in the Gerry-Darryl-Terrence trio, I'm feeling like this season is going to be a bit of a letdown. McNamara and Matt Gorman are the last scholarship players from the championship squad and there's a definite sense of closure coming from that. They are a Top-25 team but they probably won't get past the Sweet Sixteen this year, though it would still be an improvement. Unfortunately, I believe that we are about to watch an end of an era - a decline that began with the Final Four MOP crying at his farewell press conference and eventually culminating at the end of this season. Fortunately, there's already a new era of Syracuse Basketball developing - one that began with a recruiting trip to Niagara Falls this past spring and figures to last longer than 4 years this time.
