Syracuse Basketball Player Profiles: The Starting Five

Nov 18, 2013; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange forward DaJuan Coleman (32) shoots the ball around St. Francis Terriers center Matt Milk (33) during the first half at Carrier Dome. Photo Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Dajuan Coleman

In the front court, it’s all about how Coleman will play. As much as I’ve hyped his improvements and the work he’s done to prepare himself for this season, until he’s on the court it’s a mystery how Coleman will fill in at center. If he can perform even half as well as Christmas did last year I’d consider that a win and a huge boost for this team.

I know the burning question on everyone’s mind is whether or not his knees will hold up, but I feel like that topic has been beaten to death so I’m not going to get into it too much. All I’ll say is that I fully expect him to be 100% healthy this year. I think the chance of re-injury is no greater than the odds that McCullough would go down last year. It could happen, but it could happen to anyone. Boeheim seems to agree.

"“He’s either going to go and be all right or he’s going to go and not be all right. It has nothing to do with his minutes. He could play two minutes a game and get hurt or he could play the whole game and not get hurt. His limitation would be that he hasn’t played in two years and the conditioning factor. He is going to need rest. He would anyway. Big guys like that need rest.” -Jim Boeheim"

In terms of how much playing time he will see, I think it will be a lot. Boeheim has made it abundantly clear that he will not be rested due to the injuries. He’s recovered, so the only rest he will need will be based on his conditioning and his size. Remember folks, he hasn’t seen a college basketball court in almost two years.

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I think Coleman will make big strides this year. I fully expect the first half of the season to be a bit shaky as he readjusts to the speed of the game. But by mid-season, I think he’ll be back in form and contributing regularly. By the end of the year I could see him putting up about 10 points and 8 rebounds a game.

I know those numbers are optimistic, but let’s not forget that he was once a McDonald’s All American himself and heavily recruited by Kentucky.

So there you have it, your (most likely) starting five for the Syracuse basketball season. There isn’t much expectation from the team this year, but I think they will be a big surprise. The starting five has lots of experience and they have a few solid bench players like Joseph, Lydon, and Howard that will chip in. In the end, the season will be a big time success and I think we’ll be dancing in March.

Check back over the next few days for more Syracuse basketball coverage as we prepare for the season to kick off. We’ll be covering season predictions, player profiles, and some ACC pre-season power ranking so don’t miss it! Also, don’t forget to follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Syracuse news and gossip.