Inside the Loud House
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Syracuse Basketball: Top 50 Players in School History (40-36)

By Josh Peelman

Jan 5, 2016; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange forward Michael Gbinije (0) reacts to a made basket against the Clemson Tigers during the second half at the Carrier Dome. Clemson won 74-73 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 5, 2016; Syracuse, NY, USA; Syracuse Orange forward Michael Gbinije (0) reacts to a made basket against the Clemson Tigers during the second half at the Carrier Dome. Clemson won 74-73 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports /
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#38: Etan Thomas

Forward: 1996-2000

The first time I heard the name Etan Thomas was in my NBA Live game growing up as a kid. I never knew he played at Syracuse until much later. When I put players on teams in my video game, he was usually someone I liked putting on my team as a free agent or by trading for him. I did that mostly for one reason: I knew he could block shots really well.

Not surprisingly, that is what Etan Thomas did best while playing for SU. He is the all-time leader (first) in blocked shots in Syracuse Basketball history with 424, according to Cuse.com. In addition to blocking shots, Thomas was also a pretty good rebounder and scorer. In each year while at Syracuse those numbers rose:

Season School Conf G TRB STL BLK PTS
1996-97 Syracuse Big East 25 4.2 0.4 1.9 5.7
1997-98 Syracuse Big East 35 6.6 0.8 3.9 11.3
1998-99 Syracuse Big East 33 7.4 0.8 4.0 12.3
1999-00 Syracuse Big East 29 9.3 0.8 3.7 13.6
Career Syracuse 122 6.9 0.7 3.5 11.0

Provided by CBB at Sports Reference: View Original Table– Generated 4/23/2017.

Thomas was so good by the time his senior year came around that he became a first round pick, 12th overall to be exact to the Dallas Mavericks in the 2000 NBA Draft, according to ESPN.com. Usually seniors don’t get picked that high in NBA Draft, but in Thomas’s case, he earned his selection that early. That just shows you how far he developed over the course of his SU career.

In addition, Etan Thomas is 35th All-Time on Syracuse Basketball’s scoring list with 1,340 points, according to Orangehoops.org. The fact that Thomas is that high up the scoring list, along with being the all-time leader in block shots at Syracuse, makes him a definite fixture in our rankings.

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