Syracuse Basketball: Does Roberson Deserve More Respect?

After the Syracuse basketball team’s loss to Pittsburgh, Jim Boeheim made some comments about Tyler Roberson in his press conference that have drawn some criticism from fans.

Jim Boeheim, in typical grumpy old man fashion, threw Roberson under the bus, saying, “If I had anybody else he wouldn’t play a minute. Not a minute. Watch the game. I’m not going to describe what he did out there today.” Here’s a link to that entire press conference.

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Pretty harsh words from the head coach. Roberson has had some pretty monster games for Syracuse basketball this year. Without him against Duke, there is zero chance we win that game. He grabbed 20 boards and dominated the interior. He had 14 and 9 against UConn in the Battle 4 Atlantis tourney in a three point win. He had 12 and 15 against Virginia Tech in the overtime win.

Clearly, he’s a good player who can help this team out tremendously.

The problem however, is that he disappears in games for long stretches and is actually a detriment to the team at times. Since that Va Tech OT game, Roberson has averaged under 6 points and just 4.3 rebounds per game. He’s been a ghost on the floor and has also been a liability on the defensive end. He hasn’t done a good job of boxing out, and in three of the last four games the team has given up 14, 14, and 17 offensive rebounds.

That’s unacceptable. That can’t happen. And the truth is, a lot of that falls on Tyler Roberson. He’s been out of position far too often, he’s done a poor job boxing out, and his intensity has been non-existent. I really don’t know what changed, but something did. It’s almost like he’s playing scared out there on the court.

Bottom line, what Jim Boeheim said in his press conference was pretty brutal and uncalled for in a public forum. I’m not sure how he expects that kind of statement to help Roberson in any way. Maybe he was trying to get Roberson mad, but that hasn’t really worked in three years so I’m not sure now is the time to try it.

I have to say though, after watching the Pitt and Louisville games, I don’t necessarily think what he said was inaccurate. Roberson should not have been on the floor in either of those games the way he was playing. He got pushed around and bullied on the interior and instead of fighting back he gave up. You could literally see it every time he got down the floor. Shoulders slumped. Hands down. No energy. He looked deflated, and I honestly wish he had been pulled sooner. But as Boeheim said, there is no one else.

If only we had Moustapha Diagne. Thanks a lot NCAA. Jerks.

Next: SU Loses to Pitt, 66-52

Things need to change, and change fast. I truly hope these comments light a fire under him because he needs it. He needs to take these last three games of the season as a chance to prove that he deserves the big minutes. He needs to step up and absolutely dominate.

His first chance to do that will come on Saturday against NC State. Here’s hoping he finally wakes up and shows us the player that took it to Duke. Check back later in the week for a preview of the NC State game.

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