SYRACUSE 2007-2008 SNAPSHOT

May 8, 2007



Head Coach: Jim Boeheim
2006-2007 Record: 24-11 (10-6 Big East) NIT Quarterfinals

Returning Players:
Josh Wright, Senior (Point Guard)
Eric devendorf, Junior (Guard)
Andy Rautins, Junior (Guard)
Arinze Onuaku, Sophomore (Center)
Paul Harris, Sophomore (Guard/Forward)
Devin Brennan-McBride, Sophomore (Forward/Center)

Incoming Players:
Johnny Flynn (Guard)
Donte Green (Forward)
Rick Jackson (Center/Forward)
Antonio Jardine (Guard)
Sean Williams (Center)
Kristof Ongenaet (Big Forward)

Grduated Players:
Demetris Nichols
Terrence Roberts
Darryl Watkins
Matt Gorman


Open Items/Issues:
Syracuse just added a 6th member to their 2007 recruiting class when they picked up a commitment from JUCO PF Kristof Ongenaet, a 6'8 junior-to-be originally from Belgium. With Ongenaet the Orange hope to add some physical presence in the paint with a little maturity as the Orange frontcourt is scheduled to be young and inexperienced next season.

Otherwise it has been a quiet offseason for the Orange. No open issues regarding transfers as Syracuse looks to get back to the NCAA Tournament next season.

Summary:
No team was hit more by graduation than the Orange last year as 51% of their scoring and 56% of their rebounding leaves after four seasons in the form of Terrence Roberts, Demetris Nichols, Darryl Watkins and Matt Gorman. To hopefully offset the losses due to graduation, Jim Boeheim is going to have to hope his top-ranked recruiting class is ready to go early. Last year, top recruit Paul Harris struggled to acclimate himself in the Big East and find consistent minutes with an experienced team. Next year, the Orange will look for him to take on a bigger role and open up the competition for playing time to the newcomers. Donte Green and Johnny Flynn were McDonald's All-Americans and Rick Jackson and Antonio Jardine have a winning pedigree out of Philadelphia.

Also returning to the court for the Orange is Arinze Onuaku. The redshirt sophomore missed last season due to a knee injury and the Orange missed his bulk and underrated skills in the post last year as they had nobody capable of picking up the slack when Roberts and Watkins were out of the game. This year, Onuaku could be called on to start with their inexperience upfront, so he could be a player under the microscope early on.

The Orange also struggled last year at point guard as Josh Wright failed to capitalize on his chance to take the job as his. Next year Flynn enters the picture. Flynn has many of the same traits as Wright, but seems to have a better grasp at the finer points of being a distributor at this stage than Wright did. Eric Devendorf also began to play pretty well as a point guard down the stretch, but the junior is obviously more comfortable looking to score the ball. Paul Harris, who played in high school with Flynn, is also a player to be aware of heading into his sophomore season. Harris struggled finding his niche last season and got pinched for time behind Devendorf and Nichols at his natural positions. Harris should find a comfort zone this year and show why he was so highly regarded coming up through the prep ranks.

The Orange have now gone three seasons without a win in the NCAA Tournament. To change that slide next season, Syracuse will have to first make the tournament, which is not a guarantee after finding themselves in the NIT last year and graduating their entire starting frontcourt. However, Jim Boeheim always seems to get his teams to come together when they are being counted out, so next year will be another test for the hall of fame coach. He will have to blend a talented incoming class with some exciting holdovers. The talent is there and this should be a team that makes the NCAA Tournament, however they will have to avoid losing home games they should win and steal an important game or two away from home.