Syracuse Basketball: Despite a year of inconsistency, the Cardiac ‘Cuse prevailed
Syracuse Basketball lost Tyler Lydon, Darius Bazley, and potentially Tyus Battle in a year. Despite their inconsistency, ‘Cuse once again prevailed.
Last season, following Syracuse Basketball’s unprecedented 2016 Final Four run, in which the Cardiac ‘Cuse took down Domantas Sabonis’s Gonzaga Bulldogs, and Malcolm Brogdon’s No. 1 seed Virginia Cavaliers in the Elite Eight, the Orange failed to make the NCAA Tournament.
Tyler Lydon’s departure:
10 days later, Syracuse sophomore Tyler Lydon, who averaged more than 13 points and nine rebounds in a tough Atlantic Coast Conference, decided to declare for the 2017 NBA Draft.
Despite receiving tons of verbal backlash from Syracuse fans, and college basketball analysts across the country, Lydon continued to treasure the memories he made in Orange, and never had something negative to say about the program.
The then 20-year-old knew how privileged he was to have worn the sacred Orange and White for two years, but knew that his chances of being selected in the first round of the draft were highly likely.
Following an injury-riddled rookie season and no playing time in the NBA, many believe that Lydon could have greatly benefitted from playing one more season at Syracuse. Despite having the potential to serve as a viable stretch four option for most NBA teams, Lydon will most likely never live up to the expectations now set on fellow rookie Donovan Mitchell, who was traded for him during the NBA Draft.
For those who don’t remember or don’t even know, the Denver Nuggets traded the rights to now Rookie of the Year candidate Mitchell to the Utah Jazz for Trey Lyles and the rights to Tyler Lydon on June 23rd.
Wow…
This particular NBA Draft trade between a rebuilding Western Conference team and a middle-of-the-pack Western Conference team usually favors the lower-seeded team in the long-term.
Following Hayward’s departure from Utah, Jazz head coach Quin Snyder has quickly made the most out of Mitchell’s abilities, and the No. 5 team in the Western Conference holds a 3-1 lead of Russell Westbrook’s Oklahoma City Thunder.
Prior to his dominant 2018 NBA Playoffs thus far, Mitchell played 79 out of Utah’s 82 games and averaged more than 20 points a night. On Monday night, Mitchell became the second Rookie Guard to score 100 or more points in their first four NBA Playoff games. The other to accomplish the feat you ask? None other than Michael Jordan.
On the other hand, Lydon appeared in just one game for the Nuggets all season, a team that barely missed the playoffs for the second straight season.
Taurean Thompson’s departure:
Shortly before the 2017-18 season, Syracuse forward Taurean Thompson requested to leave the team in order to join a program closer to home. After leaving the Orange, Thompson enrolled at Seton Hall, and it appeared as if Tyus Battle, Syracuse’s lone promising returning sophomore, was unable carry the load on his own. However, the seven months that followed Thompson’s departure ended up being seven months to remember for Syracuse and their fans across the country.
Syracuse Basketball once again shocked the NCAA:
In typical fashion, the Syracuse Orange once again made the most out of what seemed to be another lost season. After Thompson and graduate transfer, Geno Thorpe departed from Central New York and Howard Washington suffered a season-ending knee injury in late January, Syracuse Basketball had just seven scholarship players on college basketball’s shallowest team.
Despite that, the Orange went on to receive the NCAA Tournament’s final at-large bid, beat Arizona State, No. 6 TCU, No. 3 MSU, and suddenly, the team that most people didn’t think deserved a shot at a National Championship was in the Sweet Sixteen for the second time in three years.
Darius Bazley’s departure:
Less than a month ago, one of Syracuse’s best recruits since the Carmelo Anthony saga, Darius Bazley, decided to de-commit from the Orange and is set to become the first top-10 recruit out of high school to skip college and head straight to the G-Leauge. It seems pretty obvious that the kid is prioritizing his career, and believes that playing professional basketball right out of high school will better prepare him for the competitive NBA that awaits him.
As a fervent supporter of all things Syracuse Basketball, this stings, especially because Bazley is the first highly-touted recruit to make this leap to the pros, and de-commit after signing his National Letter of Intent (NLI) with Syracuse last summer.
At this very moment, many are probably convinced that with Bazley’s departure, and the potential chance that Battle is also on his way out, Syracuse Basketball’s 2019 NCAA Tournament hopes are in jeopardy.
However, with Oshae Brissett, Frank Howard, and Jalen Carey, the 36th best NCAA prospect out of high school according to ESPN set to join Syracuse, the Orange should be more than fine in an ACC that boasts some of college basketball’s best players.
Tyus Battle’s potential departure:
Earlier this month, Syracuse sophomore Tyus Battle was set to make a decision as to whether or not he will choose to return to Central New York for his Junior season, or turn pro, and join the NBA. Last Week, Battle made a wise decision to enter the NBA Draft without hiring an agent. This allows the star-studded guard from Edison, NJ to compete in the NBA Draft Combine, get a taste as to where he will be selected in the draft, and if he’s not pleased, return for his Junior season.
Next: Syracuse Football: Ranking every SU first round pick in NFL Draft history
In conclusion:
As a fan of Syracuse basketball, it is easy to feel as if this team suffers more than it does succeed. Despite having tons of high-end recruits leave their program as a result of either de-committing or turning pro, this team still finds a way to win year after year. For that very reason, Syracuse basketball’s year-long inconsistency is worth the stress and will continue to be for the forseeable future.