12 Questions for 12 Scholarship Players on the 2022-2023 Syracuse Men’s Basketball Team
The 2022-2023 collegian academic year is nearly under way. Before fans know it, late October will be here and Syracuse basketball will play exhibition games in the JMA Wireless Dome.
This season is filled with loads of intrigue.
It’s the first time ever under Jim Boeheim a Syracuse team will have to rebound from a losing season. The 2021-2022 squad was fun to watch offensively but on defense it was like airport security in the 1970s: Nonexistent.
Another intriguing aspect of this upcoming season is the roster turnover.
The Orange lost its best player and multi-year starter senior guard Buddy Boeheim to the NBA. Senior forward starters Jimmy Boeheim and Cole Swider became pros after transferring to Syracuse for their final year of college ball.
Bourama Sidibe exhausted his eligibility after a lengthy Orange career and Frank Anselem transferred to Georgia.
There are still some familiar faces on the roster. Guards Joe Girard III and Symir Torrence are back for their senior season. Center Jesse Edwards is back for his senior season as well as sophomore forward Benny Williams.
Coach Boeheim reloaded with seven new players: A six player recruiting class along with a transfer.
With this new mix of players on the roster, let’s go through each player on the roster and ask a question that’ll determine their impact this season.
John Bol Ajak: Redshirt Junior Forward: 6-10, 216 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: 5.1 MPG, 0.4 PPG, 1.2 RPG, 0.4 APG
Will Ajak’s Experience Get Him Playing Time?
The forward position is the biggest question mark for the Orange. Benny Williams is the most game-experienced forward on the roster with 29 games played last season. However, Ajak has three seasons in the program.
Other than these two, there are three freshmen who can play forward. Maliq Brown, Chris Bunch and Justin Taylor can all play on the backline of the zone. The question is, will they be accumulated with the zone enough to keep Ajak off the floor completely? One freshman will almost certainly start next to Williams in the forward spot. Boeheim may go to Ajak early in the season for Ajak’s experience in the backline. At 6-10, he has good size and instincts but lacks athleticism.
A steading force, Ajak could be a resource to spell confused freshmen early on. If and how long Ajak gets into games will remain to be seen.
Maliq Brown: Freshman Forward: 6-8, 213 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: N/A
Amongst the Freshmen Forwards, Can Brown Stick Out?
Brown is the most mysterious forward in the class. Between him, Bunch and Taylor, Brown is the lowest ranked recruit of the three as he is outside the top 200. The freshman out of Blue Ridge High School is known more for his rebounding and defense than he is his offensive game. Brown could find time if he is the best freshman forward defender, as the Orange struggled to defend from the forward position last season.
Chris Bunch: Freshman Forward: 6-7. 180 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: N/A
Can Bunch Bring Enough Shooting to the Forward Spot?
Bunch has a classic Syracuse forward look to him: Long and lanky. Boeheim will need Bunch’s skills behind the three-point arc with the loss of shooting off of last year’s roster. Swider and Jimmy Boeheim combined to make 117 three pointers at about a 40% rate.
Bunch is known for having a good shooting stroke, something other forwards Williams, Ajak and Brown are not known for. If Bunch can shoot threes above 33% next year, Orange coaches and fans should be satisfied.
Peter Carey: Freshman Center: 6-11, 200 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: N/A
Will Carey Redshirt?
The center position is one of the more known quantities on the roster. Jesse Edwards will start and play at least 30 minutes per game unless he has foul trouble. Behind him, it’s hard to believe Mounir Hima would transfer to Syracuse not to be the backup center and get the rest of those minutes.
Therefore, there’s a good possibility Carey redshirts as there doesn’t seem to be much playing time for him. The center from Massachusetts is known as a project who has a high upside but isn’t ready for the physical college game.
Quadir Copeland: Freshman Guard: 6-6, 203 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: N/A
Can Copeland Break Boeheim’s Traditional Three Guard Usage?
A strength of Syracuse's is its guard depth. Girard is returning for his fourth year and Torrence is looking to build off an impressive end to the season. Incoming freshman guard Judah Mintz is Syracuse’s highest-rated guard since Tyus Battle in 2016. Copeland and Taylor also are incoming freshman who can play guard.
The days of walk-on Braedon Bayer being the third guard for Boeheim are over. This squad has enough depth to sustain injuries and poor play.
The only question is how much of it will Boeheim use?
Girard, Torrence and Mintz all are most likely to play major minutes throughout the year. Girard and Torrence have experience in the system and Mintz looks too good to keep off the floor.
The problem for Copeland is, Boeheim has rarely played four guards consistent minutes throughout the season. Once conference play begins, Boeheim almost never plays four guards in a close game.
Copeland has great size at 6-6 for a guard. If Girard or any of the guards are struggling defensively, or Boeheim wants to go to the press, Copeland could see some time. Don’t bank on it though. All Syracuse fans can hope is Copeland is patient and doesn’t jump into the transfer portal after the season.
Jesse Edwards: Senior Center: 6-11, 230 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: 28 MPG, 12 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 2.8 BPG
Can Edwards Be the Second-Best Center in the ACC?
When Edwards broke his wrist against Boston College, the Orange’s season went up in flames. Edwards broke out last year, becoming the first Syracuse center since Rakeem Christmas to be an efficient scoring option and protect the paint.
After Edwards was out, the Orange finished 3-6 without him.
Now healthy, Edwards is primed to be one of the Orange’s top scoring options.
How much can he improve?
If Edwards improves his rebounding, stays out of foul trouble and develops a touch outside the paint, he could be the second-best center in the league behind Armondo Bacot.
This would lead to Syracuse getting back into the NCAA Tournament picture. It will be fascinating to see if Edwards develops even more or stagnates after an excellent junior season.
Joe Girard III: Senior Guard: 6-1, 190 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: 34.1 MPG, 13.8 PPG, 2.8 RBS, 4.2 APG
How Well Can Girard Score Off Ball?
Although Girard has played three seasons as the point guard let’s face it: He’s a scorer not a playmaker.
Girard made his legacy in high school breaking the all-time New York state scoring record, not the assist record. He played point guard out of necessity these past few years, but not anymore.
Torrence and Mintz can set the table while Girard plays off ball, comes off screens and lets it fly. Orange fans saw a preview of Girard playing off ball against Duke when he scored 18 first-half points and 23 overall. He was set up by Torrence as they battled Duke until the end of the game.
With Girard free to score, how efficient can he be? He’s a lights out shooter when he has his feet set. With less playmaking on his shoulders, maybe Girard will have more energy to defend better, something he hasn’t excelled at in his first three years. If he can be the number one option and score north of 18 PPG efficiently, Syracuse could surprise some people.
Mounir Hima: Sophomore Center: 6-11, 230 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: 9.6 MPG, 1.9 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 1.0 BPG
What Does Hima Have to Offer Other Than Being Tall?
Syracuse needed a backup center after Frank Anselem entered the transfer portal. What they got confused Syracuse fans.
A reserve center who averaged less than 10 minutes a game against A-10 level competition didn’t bring cheers around the Syracuse area. It brought befuddlement.
Why would Syracuse bring on a guy who couldn’t play at the mid-major level? Were they that “down bad”, as the kids say?
One thing Hima does have is size. At 6-11, he has more than a 7-6 wingspan which is ideal in the back of the zone. All Hima needs to do is spell Edwards for a few minutes for Edwards’ rest or foul trouble. During that time he needs to be tall and rebound. Anything else should be gravy for Syracuse fans.
Judah Mintz: Freshman Guard: 6-3, 172 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: N/A
Will Mintz Force Boeheim to Evenly Distribute Minutes Between Him and Torrence?
Mintz might be the most talked about player this offseason. His scoring prowess at Oak Hill Academy was fantastic. The Orange program needed a high level freshman guard and it looks like they might have it.
If Mintz can deliver, he might force Boeheim to do something he’s only done twice in the past decade: Play the starting guards and a guard off the bench all over 20 minutes per game.
The most notable and successful example was in 2011-2012 with Dion Waiters, Scoop Jardine and Brandon Triche. Jardine started and played the most minutes with 25.2 minutes per game. Waiters came off the bench and averaged 24.1 minutes per game while Triche started and averaged 22.5 minutes per game. That team went 34-3 and lost in the Elite Eight to Ohio State.
The other example was recently in the 2020-2021 season. Buddy Boeheim led the guards with 36.2 minutes per game. Girard started alongside him and averaged 27.7 minutes per game. Kadary Richmond came off the bench and averaged 21 minutes per game. That year Syracuse made it to the Sweet 16 and lost to Houston.
If Boeheim spreads out the minutes, it will be beneficial to the team because each player should sit more and have better energy. This could lead to better defense and better pace of play.
Boeheim could see the success he had in the past with this idea and could do it. But don’t be surprised if the veteran coach sticks to his usual minutes distribution.
Justin Taylor: Freshman Guard: 6-6, 205 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: N/A
Will Taylor Show Flashes of Being a More Athletic Buddy Boeheim?
Taylor has been getting the Boeheim comparisons since he was first recruited by Syracuse. They both are around the same height and are known as shooters.
The difference is athleticism and scoring ability. Boeheim was a better scorer than Taylor will be this year as Boeheim averaged over 19 points per game. Taylor won’t come close to that.
Taylor is more athletic than Boeheim, and is more ready for the physical play than Boeheim was his freshman year.
Taylor is one of five forwards looking for playing time. When he gets on the floor, you might have to blink twice to realize that isn’t Boeheim back for his fifth year.
Symir Torrence: Senior Guard: 6-3, 195 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: 13.1 MPG, 2.6 PPG, 1.6 RPG, 2.9 APG
Can Torrence Be the Best Playmaker Since Tyler Ennis?
This might sound like an audacious question. However, since Ennis left Syracuse in 2014 there has been only one player to average more than five assists per game: John Gillon.
Torrence has shown the potential. In the last two games of last year, he averaged 10 assists per game with approximately a 6-1 assist to turnover ratio. That’s a ridiculous stat line that’s impossible to achieve over a full season.
However, if Torrence can average over five assists per game the offense will be humming and Syracuse should be winning. A win-win scenario if Torrence steps up.
Benny Williams: Sophomore Forward: 6-8, 208 LBS
2021-2022 College Stats: 10.8 MPG, 1.9 PPG, 1.4 RPG, 0.2 APG
How Much Can Williams Improve Himself and Therefore the Team?
Williams’ play last season was the cherry on top of a disappointing cake of a season. He was Syracuse’s most highly rated recruit in half a decade and couldn’t get on the floor and make an impact. With Swider and Jimmy Boeheim gone, it’s Williams’ time to breakout. How much he breaks out is huge. It would be very hard to decline with the season he had last year.
If Williams can be a good rebounder and weakside rim protector with some good finishing, Syracuse fans will see their team improve from the worst season in over a half a century.
SUPPORT ALL SYRACUSE
SUBSCRIBE TO ALLSYRACUSE.COM NOW TO GET ACCESS TO EXCLUSIVE INSIDER CONTENT
JOIN THE ALL SYRACUSE FORUMS FOR FREE AND DISCUSS THE ORANGE WITH OTHER FANS AND OUR STAFF
