Syracuse Basketball: Biggest Takeaways from Orange's Season so Far

For the second time in a week, the Syracuse basketball team knocked off a ranked ACC opponent. After beating Louisville at home, the Orange went to South Bend, Indiana, and held a potent Notre Dame offense to 60 points in a 65-60 win.

B.J. Johnson was the team's MVP, as he matched his career high with 19 points off the bench. And the win was most impressive because the Orange were able to hold off the Irish despite Rakeem Christmas fouling out with about five minutes to go.

It should have been another resume-building win for the Orange, but they have no resume to build, as they won't be playing in the postseason.

This has been one of the most interesting Syracuse basketball seasons in recent memory. With the schedule winding down, let's take a look at the biggest takeaways from the Orange's season thus far.

Kaleb Joseph Is a Bigger Project Than We Thought

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We knew heading into the season that Kaleb Joseph wasn't as polished as Tyler Ennis. But it seemed that, based on his athleticism, he could improve throughout the season with some solid coaching.

That hasn't been the case so far. Joseph hasn't gotten markedly better at all during the season. He still finds himself next to coach Jim Boeheim on the bench getting an earful far too often. 

All you have to do is look at Joseph's minutes. He has managed to break 30 minutes only once over the last nine games, and he only got 16 against Pittsburgh and 21 against Notre Dame. He still struggles to run the offense efficiently, and he gets lost on defense and allows guards to penetrate with the dribble, which breaks down the zone.

In his defense, Joseph wasn't even supposed to start this year. He was supposed to apprentice under Ennis and get comfortable with the college game, but Ennis jumped to the NBA last year and Joseph was thrust into the starting role.

With some work in the offseason, Joseph should be able to improve his game heading into next season. The Orange will need him to, because he will still be the only true point guard on next year's roster.

Rakeem Christmas Can Be a Pro

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You could see the potential in Rakeem Christmas starting in his freshman year. He had the athleticism, and Jim Boeheim trusted him enough to start him right when he arrived on campus. But because he was playing with other great players, Christmas was never a go-to guy on offense.

In his senior season, however, Christmas is the player for the Orange on offense. Pittsburgh was so worried about him that it triple-teamed him in the paint and dared the Orange to beat it from the outside. 

Christmas' improvement is apparent right away when you look at the numbers. He's up to 18.1 points and 9.2 rebounds per game from 5.8 and 5.1 per game last year. Each time down the floor, posting up Christmas is the Orange's first option on offense.

Sometimes Christmas struggles because he commands so much attention, such as in the Pittsburgh game. But if he is playing in the NBA, he's not going to see very many tripe-teams. 

And he has a pretty polished post game that can be successful in the pros. He can score with the jump hook over either shoulder, he's strong enough to seal his man in the lane and finish through contact, and he can pass out to shooters on the wing.

Is Christmas going to be a lottery pick this year? Probably not. But when scouts look at his game, they will see a player with experience and talent in the post that translates to the next level.

The Orange Actually Might Have Some Depth

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This is something we weren't sure about heading into the season. Ron Patterson and B.J. Johnson played sparingly in their freshman years, so it was unclear how much they would be able to contribute this season when their roles would increase.

For the first half of the season, they weren't contributing much. Jim Boeheim barely used his bench at all, only using Patterson to spell Kaleb Joseph when the freshman point guard struggled. But over the last month or so, Syracuse's duo off the bench has helped swing some games.

The most recent example is the win over Notre Dame. Johnson tied his career high with 19 points and added six rebounds in 29 minutes. It was the second game in a row he scored in double figures. Johnson also hit three clutch free throws late against the Irish that helped salt away the victory.

Patterson also had a nice game, albeit in a loss, against Pittsburgh. He scored nine points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field. He had just six against Notre Dame, but the Orange needed each of his points to get the win.

Their performance over the last few games should earn Johnson and Patterson more playing time down the stretch. Boeheim will start to trust them more, and it should give them confidence to keep playing well when their numbers are called.

The Team Is in Good Hands with Michael Gbinije

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Michael Gbinije has overtaken Trevor Cooney as this team's second-best player. He plays three positions for the Orange, and he doubles as the backup point guard when Kaleb Joseph hits the pine.

Gbinije had a three-game stretch earlier this month when he scored at least 20 points in each game. And he was getting it done in a variety of ways. He can step out and hit the three, and he can attack off the dribble and finish at the rim.

He seems to be gaining confidence every game, and after a slow start to the season from the free-throw line, Gbinije is getting better there as well. He's shooting 69 percent from the stripe over the past seven games. 

After Rakeem Christmas leaves this year, the Orange are going to need another player to step up and be the leader of the team. It's looking more and more like Gbinije will be that player. 

Ban or No Ban, These Guys Come to Play

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After Syracuse University took its basketball team out of postseason competition this year, it was fair to wonder how the team would react. With nothing to play for, would the players come out and give it their all in the remaining games? The answer is a resounding yes.

Over the past week, the Orange have beaten two ranked teams. They topped then-12th-ranked Louisville in the Carrier Dome and then went on the road and shut down 9th-ranked Notre Dame. 

Even in the games they lost, the Orange hung tough and were in positions to win. They had two six-point losses to Pittsburgh. Duke, a Top-Five team, only won by eight.

The Orange players have the right attitude in these games too. Trevor Cooney told Donna Ditota of Syracuse.com, "... we want to prove to people that we would make the tournament. That's all we want to do, put ourselves in a position at the end of the year to make it."

Even though the Orange won't be playing in the postseason, fans should be proud of their team for continuing to compete after their tournament hopes were taken away from them.