Syracuse basketball will look to rebound in the upcoming campaign after a disappointing 2021-22 season that saw head coach Jim Boeheim endure his first losing stanza in 46 years guiding the Orange on the Hill.
This past season, the ‘Cuse went 16-17, understandably frustrating the Orange fan base, with some hoops fanatics calling for Boeheim to retire.
In all fairness, Syracuse basketball lost an abundance of close games, and if the Orange could have made a few plays here and there in a variety of contests, the ‘Cuse likely would have finished above the .500 mark and possibly earned a berth to either this spring’s Big Dance or at least the NIT.
But the defense proved a major liability throughout 2021-22, and the Orange’s offensive firepower simply wasn’t enough to prevent a losing season.
As we forge ahead to 2022-23, like many other teams in the sport of college basketball, the ‘Cuse will have a vastly different roster. Gone are senior shooting guard Buddy Boeheim, graduate student forward Jimmy Boeheim, senior forward Cole Swider and graduate student center Bourama Sidibe.
Sophomore center Frank Anselem and sophomore wing Chaz Owens are in the NCAA’s transfer portal. Syracuse basketball coaches pursued local big man Quincy Ballard, but he ultimately chose to move from Florida State to Wichita State after considering the ‘Cuse.
Arriving on the Hill is a six-member 2022 recruiting class that presently ranks in the top-10 nationally, per Rivals.com. I assume the Orange coaching staff could try to get another back-up center out of the portal, but that won’t prove easy.
So, if my math is correct, as things currently stand, Syracuse basketball has 11 scholarship players for 2022-23, and the ‘Cuse does have two available scholarships for the upcoming term.
The 2022-23 roster, at least for the time being, consists of junior guard Joe Girard III, junior guard Symir Torrence, junior center Jesse Edwards, freshman forward Benny Williams, redshirt sophomore power forward/center John Bol Ajak, and the six 2022 signees.
The Orange’s 2022 commits feature four-star guard Judah Mintz, four-star shooting guard/small forward Justin Taylor, four-star point guard Quadir Copeland, four-star small forward Chris Bunch, three-star power forward/center Peter Carey, and three-star power forward Maliq Brown.
In late January, Jim Boeheim did say that he thought a couple of the ‘Cuse 2022 signees could start in 2022-23, and I’ll be highly interested to see how that shakes out.
As we discuss the projected starting line-up for 2022-23, I think a couple of slots are extremely debatable, while some of them, at least to me, are not.
Let’s forecast the starting rotation for Syracuse basketball in 2022-23.
Symir Torrence
Other than one of the forward spots, who will start at point guard for the Orange in 2022-23 is going to prove really fascinating to me. I say this, because I get the feeling that perhaps Girard is going to start at shooting guard, where I think he will shine as a senior.
With Girard potentially off the ball, I believe that the starting point guard will come down to Torrence and Mintz, who was tremendous during his senior season for the Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va.
We recently had an article detailing some comments from Mintz, and it seems pretty clear that Syracuse basketball coaches are anticipating that he will play significant minutes as a freshman.
That being said, I have read observations from national recruiting analysts who speak to Mintz maybe being a bit more comfortable at shooting guard, rather than point guard, at least for now.
Plus, while Mintz has faced off against top-flight competition in his tenure at the Oak Hill Academy as well as on the grassroots basketball circuit, he still is only going to be a freshman in 2022-23.
I don’t think his adjustment to major Division I collegiate hoops will be as big as for some of the other 2022 commits that the ‘Cuse has, but I’m going to go with Torrence here as the starting point guard.
A Central New York native, Torrence transferred to the Hill from Marquette ahead of the 2021-22 campaign. For the entire term, according to ESPN statistics, he averaged 13.1 minutes, 2.6 points, 2.9 assists and 1.6 rebounds a game, while connecting on 41.6 percent from the field, 50.0 percent from the free-throw line and 37.5 percent from beyond the arc.
Without question, Mintz, Girard and others on the roster are better shooters than Torrence, but his athleticism, quickness, floor vision, ability to facilitate for others, and prowess for getting into the lane are strong attributes that he boasts.
In March, when Syracuse basketball torched Florida State and then fought tough against Duke in the 2022 ACC Tournament, Torrence produced a combined 20 assists against just three turnovers.
I know that Boeheim isn’t afraid to start freshmen when he thinks they’re ready, but he’s also loyal to veterans. Look for the senior duo of Torrence and Girard to start, with Mintz playing a lot as the primary back-up at both positions.
To that end, I don’t envision Copeland, who is out of the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., seeing a lot of court time. And his IMG Academy teammate, Taylor, I think will suit up more at small forward than at shooting guard, given Mintz’s presence on the roster.
Joe Girard III
To say the least, Girard was a prolific scorer in high school during his days with Glens Falls High School in Glens Falls, N.Y.
Like much of the 2021-22 line-up, Girard did have his ups and downs as a junior, however, if Boeheim puts him at shooting guard in his senior year, I think Girard is going to play really, really well.
I honestly don’t understand why he gets so much grief from a contingent of fans on social media. It’s overblown, in my humble opinion. Sure, Girard isn’t perfect, and he’s been known to make untimely mistakes here and there.
From my perspective, though, when he’s playing point guard, he’s not playing his “natural” position. He’s a shooting guard at heart, I believe, and he’s a lethal one at that.
In 2021-22, Girard averaged 34.1 minutes, 13.8 points, 4.2 assists, 2.8 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 2.8 turnovers per affair. He hit on 39.2 percent from the field, an excellent 40.3 percent from deep, and a tremendous 88.2 percent from the charity stripe.
With Buddy Boeheim and Cole Swider no longer in Orange uniforms, opposing defenders will absolutely key in on Girard when he’s out on the perimeter.
And while the ‘Cuse may not be as good from beyond the arc this season as it was in 2021-22, I feel that Girard does have reinforcements from 3-point range, including Mintz, Taylor and the 6-foot-7 Bunch, who played as a senior for the Wasatch Academy in Mount Pleasant, Utah.
Girard certainly can facilitate for others, evidenced by the 4.2 dimes per contest that he averaged a stanza ago. But I think the team will be most beneficially served by the 6-foot-3 Torrence and the 6-foot-3 Mintz primarily commanding the point, freeing up Girard to step into his shots from the shooting-guard spot.
Jim Boeheim did mention at least once not too long ago that he thinks the 6-foot-1 Girard is well-suited at shooting guard, but whether the Syracuse basketball head coach inserts Girard into the starting line-up in that role remains to be seen.
Regardless of who starts and in what positions they start, I think the core guard trio of Girard, Torrence and Mintz is a really intriguing one, and the 6-foot-6 Taylor is more than capable of competing at shooting guard as well.
I really love Copeland’s promise, but I feel like, as far as major minutes are concerned, he’s the odd man out in the guard group for 2022-23.
Some of my fellow ‘Cuse fans have opined that they think the 6-foot-6 Copeland may redshirt. I’m not so sure about that. We’ll have to wait and see.
Benny Williams
Unless Syracuse basketball adds a big-time forward via the portal, or something unexpected transpires, I feel pretty confident that the 6-foot-8 Williams will be a starting forward for the Orange as the 2022-23 term gets underway.
Yes, Williams only averaged 10.8 minutes per game in 2021-22. Yes, he seemed to struggle with his shot. Yes, many ‘Cuse fans were irritated that he didn’t see the court more in 2021-22, because he came to Central New York as a highly rated prospect in the 2021 recruiting cycle.
Throughout the course of last season, a ton of fans on social media and in chat rooms declared that Williams was going to transfer after his freshman campaign, even though these fans had no evidence of that.
I found that ongoing speculation annoying, and Williams even said in multiple interviews during the 2021-22 season that he wasn’t going anywhere.
When he didn’t play a single minute during the Orange’s five-point home setback to Florida State this past January, there he was after the game, not complaining or whining, but rather, putting up shots and working on his craft.
In late February, before a massive Carrier Dome crowd, the ‘Cuse got smoked by top-10 Duke, yet Williams registered his best performance of 2021-22.
He played 30 minutes, while scoring 14 points and grabbing six boards. Williams connected on 5-of-7 from the field and 4-of-5 from the charity stripe, and he put forth a riveting reverse layup that made it on the ESPN SportsCenter top-10 list.
For all of 2021-22, Williams averaged 1.9 points and 1.4 rebounds per encounter. He hit on just 33.9 percent from the field, 61.9 percent from the free-throw line, and 9.1 percent from 3-point land.
I’m sure Williams is working on his jump-shot, which didn’t appear to have enough arc on it throughout 2021-22. He’s got a year in the Syracuse basketball system under his belt, and I believe he’s going to have a monster sophomore campaign, much like former Orange stars Dion Waiters and Michael Carter-Williams did.
I think that part of the issue with Williams is that he not only came to the Hill as a five-star, top-25 player according to Rivals.com, but it’s also whom he was playing behind in the rotation.
Some ‘Cuse fans felt it wasn’t just for Jimmy Boeheim and Cole Swider to eat up most of the minutes at the forward spots, when a five-star prospect was sitting on the bench.
I understand that sort of sentiment, although I’ll always maintain that Jim Boeheim would have played Williams more had he felt that Benny could help the team triumph in games.
I don’t believe for a second that Coach Boeheim gave his son, Jimmy, all of those minutes simply because he is, in fact, his son.
Regardless, Jimmy Boeheim and his brother, Buddy, are gone. There can be no more crying from some fans about nepotism. It’s time for Williams to make a stellar sophomore leap.
Justin Taylor
I have no freaking clue about this. Haha. In all seriousness, besides the starting point guard, the second forward spot is the biggest mystery, at least to me.
Okay, so here is the cadre of forwards, although I’m taking Williams out of the equation, since we already discussed him.
You’ve got the 6-foot-10 Ajak, who I believe is primarily a power forward but also can play at center. Among the 2022 signees, I feel like Taylor maybe was recruited more as a shooting guard than a small forward, given that Buddy Boeheim has moved on.
However, with Mintz in the fold as a combo guard, I could absolutely see Taylor on the wing as a forward. There’s also Bunch, the 6-foot-9 Brown, who had a beautiful senior season for the Blue Ridge School in St. George, Va., and the 6-foot-11 Carey, who was injured and didn’t play his senior stanza for the Northfield Mount Hermon School in Mount Hermon, Mass.
As I noted earlier, unless Syracuse basketball happened to add a forward from the portal who could immediately start, I foresee the second starting forward for the ‘Cuse in 2022-23 being one of the 2022 commits, because I don’t envision Ajak cracking the starting rotation.
I don’t think Carey will get the starting nod, largely because he didn’t play a stanza ago. Then again, this could be naïve thinking on my part.
But, from my perspective, it’s either Taylor, Bunch or Brown. Brown is the most physical of the three as far as his paint presence, defensive talents, and rebounding abilities.
Additionally, Brown won multiple player of the year honors in Virginia at the conclusion of the 2021-22 campaign. That being said, it’s probably fair to prognosticate that Taylor and Bunch might have faced “tougher” competition in their senior years.
From what I’ve read about Taylor, he’s a really good shooter, he’s got good size, and he’s underrated as an athlete. Both he and Bunch are rated as top-100 players in the 2022 class, per various recruiting services.
https://twitter.com/BobGallager/status/1519319234521743363?cxt=HHwWhoCyoemy2pUqAAAA
I have no inside knowledge here, and I’m simply venturing a big-time guess, but I’ll go with Taylor getting the starting nod alongside Williams at the forward spots.
Jesse Edwards
This one is easy peasy. The 6-foot-11 Edwards was in strong contention to possibly pick up the Atlantic Coast Conference’s most improved player award in 2021-22, but then he unfortunately got injured in February and missed the rest of last season.
Still, save for too frequently being in foul trouble, Edwards went full beast mode as a junior. In 2021-22, he appeared in 24 games and logged 28.0 minutes per affair.
Edwards generated averages of 12.0 points, 6.5 rebounds, an awesome 2.8 blocks, 1.1 steals and 1.0 assists per contest, while connecting on an impressive 69.5 percent from the field but just 59.8 percent from the charity stripe.
Since he’s regularly hacked in the interior, Edwards definitely has to improve his free-throw shooting percentage in 2022-23, as he could routinely pick up a few additional “free” points.
Jim Boeheim acknowledged more than once that Edwards getting injured was a huge blow to the team’s chances at reaching post-season play, whether in the NCAA Tournament or the NIT.
I totally agree. Edwards could impact the game on both ends of the floor, and much like I feel Torrence changed the complexion of the Orange’s play when he was on the floor, obviously Edwards did the same thing in anchoring the zone defense and averaging a dozen points per contest on offense.
Hopefully, Edwards will be at 100 percent health when the 2022-23 stanza begins later this year. He’s primed for another solid campaign as a senior, and he, Girard and Torrence will need to provide veteran leadership for a roster that includes six freshmen and a sophomore in Williams.
Now, should Edwards encounter foul issues in any one particular battle, and that’s likely to happen based on prior results, the ‘Cuse does have other options at center, but I also believe that Syracuse basketball is a bit thin at this position, as far as depth is concerned.
I would imagine the primary back-up will be Carey. Don’t let his national rankings in 2022 fool you. This young man can ball. He is, though, a newbie, and freshmen can sometimes struggle adjusting to the college game, especially in the rugged ACC.
Brown isn’t as tall as Carey, and I feel like he’s more of a power forward, but Brown is also physical and strong. I could see him maybe getting a couple of spot minutes here and there at center.
And then there’s Ajak. In his first two seasons in Central New York, he’s averaged about five minutes per contest, both as a freshman and as a sophomore.
Boeheim did note on a couple of occasions in 2021-22 that Ajak was faring well in practice sessions, and hopefully that extends into the upcoming campaign.
Since he’s more of a veteran than any of the 2022 commits, I could see Ajak playing a little bit of center, if needed. But, by and large, Edwards is going to get the lion’s share of minutes at this position in 2022-23.
Well, that’s a wrap. I’m curious what my fellow Syracuse basketball fans think of these starting line-up projections for 2022-23. What did I get right, and most importantly, what did I get 144 percent wrong?