Syracuse Orange Thus Far: Summary, Obstacles and Key Takeaways

“Syracuse fans are spoiled,” said Mike Tirico while announcing the Syracuse versus Michigan game.

The statement may not have hit home at the time, but after another devastating non-conference loss to St. John’s, Syracuse fans are certainly starting to understand the meaning behind the famous alumnus’ words.

With a young team as a result of losing key players Tyler Ennis, C.J. Fair, Jerami Grant, and Baye Moussa Keita last offseason, the Orange (5-3) are off to their worst start since the 2007-2008 season.

The Season So Far

Through the first eight games, the Orange has lost three times to California, Michigan and St. John’s.

Although the California game was a rout, the losses to Michigan and St. John’s can be attributed to sloppiness and inexperience.

In the Michigan game, after rallying back from ten points, the Orange found themselves down three points after Spike Albrecht made a clutch three-pointer. Cuse displayed dismal play down the line, turning the ball over not once, but twice in the remaining 30 seconds of the game—after a rogue pass from Chris McCullough and a key mistake by Kaleb Joseph when he lost the ball at frontcourt.

The St. John’s game proved to be a similar tale against a different team. Embarrassingly, the Orange were held to just two points in the final five minutes of the game in the 69-57 loss.

Thus far, a young team and poor execution have categorized the season. "We're either going to make shots against good teams or we're gonna lose," said Jim Boeheim to Syracuse.com. "It's not that complicated."

And of course, the legendary coach is correct. As a whole, the team has a field-goal percentage of about 44 percent, a three-point field-goal percentage of a mere 21 percent, also averaging about 13 turnovers per game.

Obstacles

Although the season is just under way, in their current state, Syracuse faces a challenging schedule.

They take on a tough Louisiana-Tech (7-2) team on Sunday before traveling to long-time rival Villanova. Then, in conference play will eventually begin in the Atlantic Coast Conference, a division of college basketball that currently features six ranked teams.

The Orange will match up against Virginia, Miami, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Notre Dame and Louisville once, and take on Duke and Pittsburgh twice, among a variety of other formidable opponents. A schedule like this tends to bring out the flaws in everyone, especially on the road.

The question will be if Jim Boeheim’s young team can come together in such a short time. Although struggling, Boeheim has stuck to his core four of Chris McCullough, Trevor Cooney, Kaleb Joseph and Rakeem Christmas. Each has played in over 240 minutes this season, with Michael Gbinije mainly playing 5 spot at 196 minutes on the season.

The problem arises if these five that Boeheim has placed his faith in cannot get the job done. Syracuse does not lack potential stars on the bench, but with little game-time experience, it is hard to imagine any of them getting comfortable in such a short time period.

Boeheim elaborated on the shortage of depth in an interview on ESPN Radio with Brent Axe: "…When guys play well in practice, we try to get them in the games. We haven't had great practices. We haven't had anyone who stands out like, 'Well, this guy should be playing.'"

The fact that no one has yet to emerge could put added pressure on the already underperforming starting rotation.

Key Takeaways

Despite the morbid start to the season, Syracuse fans should not lament. There are plenty of positives that suggest this team has the making to be great and get back to their winning ways.

First and foremost, look at the two main returning players from last year: Trevor Cooney and Rakeem Christmas.

Cooney, who last season matched a school record hitting nine three-pointers in a win against Notre Dame, has been dreadful. The man known for being a sharp shooter has a three-point percentage of just 28 percent this season.

Still, to think that this will last with former Syracuse phenom Gerry McNamara coaching is ridiculous. Once Cooney gets used to being a leader, he will be back draining shots again. He showed signs of life against Michigan, hitting a barrage of three-pointers in the second half.

Then there is Rakeem Christmas, perhaps the Orange’s most valuable asset. The big man has been in foul trouble a lot this season, and it has made a huge difference. Unlike past years, there is less depth down low, making it more of a necessity for him to stay in the game. As a senior though, Christmas has experience and is playing great this year; he should soon be able to adapt to the situation better.

Finally, it is hard to miss the Orange’s brightest star, Chris McCullough. Ranked as a high prospect coming into the season, the freshman has lived up to the hype.

McCullough is averaging 14.4 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. To Jim Boeheim’s dismay, Chad Ford from ESPN has McCullough as the No. 10 pick in his NBA mock draft. But before any decision-making arrives, make no mistake, McCullough will have many great performances for the Orange.