BIG EAST TOP POINT GUARDS 2008-2009: #2 JONNY FLYNN

November 5, 2008

Over the last few years, we have seen some impressive freshman performances from point guards in the Big East. Dominic James of Marquette took the conference by storm in the Golden Eagles' Big East debut campaign, Eugene Harvey seemed to be on the track to stardom after a frosh campaign had him scoring at a high clip at Seton Hall. Going back a little more, Chris Thomas looked like a star and a future NBA Draft pick in the early lottery selections.

Last year, Syracuse frosh Jonny Flynn put together an offensive showing as a point guard that rivaled any of theirs. The next question to be answered, will Flynn take that next step and become a complete point guard, making those around him better and therefore, bringing his team along for a ride in the postseason.

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Flynn, a native of Niagara Falls, made his presence felt immediately once donning an Orange uniform. In his collegiate debut, Flynn poured in 28 points and added 9 assists in a win over Siena (an NCAA tournament team). The very next night, he solidified his case as a future Orange legend by connecting on his lone field goal of the game in the waning seconds to beat St. Joseph's (another NCAA tourney club). What a two-night debut.

Like any frosh, Flynn had some early ups and downs, but when backcourt mate Eric Devendorf was lost for the season in mid-December, Flynn's role changed from point guard to iron man. In Big East play, Flynn averaged over 39 minutes a game as the lone ball-handler and perimeter scoring threat of the Orange. In the last 13 Big East contests (including the conference tournament), Flynn played in 523 of a possible 525 minutes, averaging 40.2 minutes a game (one went to overtime).

His Big East production was impressive, averaging 16.7 points a game and 4.9 assists. Flynn shot a very respectable 46% from the field and 36% from the three-point arc. What also can not be ignored is Flynn's tremendous athleticism that has seen the 6-foot guard play above the rim for impressive dunks that will open many eyes as the rest of the nation gets more of an introduction to this rising star.

The main question you will hear about Flynn is his ability to run a team efficiently. One thing that seems to be overlooked, despite seeing constant pressure as the lone ball-handler on the court much of the season and logging a tremendous amount of minutes, Flynn had an assist to turnover ratio of 2:1 on the season, turning it over just 2.7 times a game. Pretty impressive for all that he was asked to do last season.

This season, help returns to the perimeter of the Orange attack with Eric Devendorf and Andy Rautins sharing in the perimeter obligations for SU. The added help should take the pressure of Flynn and we should see a point guard begin to blossom with his all-around game. Flynn is also an excellent defender, especially in a man-to0man scheme, something that was masked by the SU zone last season. With a deeper club this year, expect to see Flynn's defensive abilities unleashed a little more as well.

The expectation for college basketball betting when it comes to March Madness is the need to have a dominant point guard. The staff at the NBE Basketball Report feels Syracuse has that aspect covered well with our #2 point guard for 2008-2009, Jonny Flynn.