Coach Speak: Peter Carey

Syracuse picked up a big commitment on Tuesday in seven footer Peter Carey. All Syracuse caught up with Jesse Shapiro, who coached Carey with the New York Lightning but is now the Direct of Rens United and the head coach of the U17 squad for the New York Rens, to find out more about Carey's game.

OFFENSE

"I think his biggest attribute on the offensive end, and I'm not a genius here because other people that see him play will say the same thing, is his athletic ability and his ability to play above the rim," Shapiro said. "Finish above the rim. Finish dunks above the rim. Rebound the ball above the rim. Finish it high above the rim. That's his strongest points offensively right now. The way he runs the court, you don't see a lot of 7-1 dudes running the court the way he runs it. I would say the biggest point that he needs to get to reach that next plateau to make an impact at Syracuse or make an impact after Syracuse is he’s got to put on some muscle and he's got to be able to be a threat on the perimeter. Just a little bit.

“I mean being able to be respectable at the mid-range jumper because that would just open up so many things for him if he can hit that mid consistently. It's going to be hard to match up with him with another traditional big. He's not a traditional big because of the way he gets up and down the court. If you match him up against a traditional post-up big, and Peter develops a jump shot, he's going to go to work."

DEFENSE

"I think his biggest strength, by far, is his timing," Shapiro said. "His timing on blocking shots. I've coached a lot of kids, a lot of D1 kids, I've coached all levels. I've never seen anybody time, the timing especially from the weak side to make the help side block. Obviously when you get to the college level and you come from the weak side, in high school you can get away with coming from the weak side, blocking the shot and not having to worry about your man. Once you get to college, he's going to have to learn how to use that aggressiveness in shot blocking to his advantage. You're not just going to be able to come from the weak side and block a shot because the level of play is too high and one of those guards will just make a dish to the secondary guy and you'll have a dunk.

"I think he needs to be a little bit more patient. I think that's his biggest thing on the defensive end is being a little more patient. Trusting his athletic ability and not going for the ball fake on the first initial. If you're looking for somebody to sprint the court in transition and pin the shot, that's Peter Carey. There's changes at each level you go to. Going to the ACC it's not going to be easier, it's going to be harder there. But he's preparing himself the right way. He plays for John Carroll over at Northfield, so I know for a fact he's going to come out of Northfield as ready as possible to play at the next level."

WHEN WILL HE BE READY TO CONTRIBUTE?

"When you come from a school like Northfield, JC who coaches there, he gets kids college ready better than anybody I've ever seen," Shapiro said. "With Peter doing a fifth year at Northfield, I'm honestly hoping he can get on the court immediately. Not saying he will have an instant impact where you're getting 10 rebounds and six blocks or anything like that. But I do think that if you throw him into the mix, what I've seen from him in a sink or swim situation, he's always swam with me. He's never sunk. So I do think that he's an immediate player but I think an impact player for Syracuse is year two. No matter what you do at a Northfield or one of these top prep schools, it's a whole other level when you go to a college like Syracuse and what they're going to put you through to be prepared. So I think the combination of Northfield and coach Autry getting involved with Peter now, they can put a plan for him to be ready when he gets there.

"I think he's got a chance to be ready. He definitely needs to get tougher. That's a 100% fact. I do think he can help and I think in the zone, he could be an immediate factor depending upon how quickly he picks up on their schemes. He's just so long and his wingspan takes up the whole paint. I do think an immediate impact on the defensive end is more likely going to happen than on the offensive end. I think the best case scenario for Peter in the pick and role situation until he develops that mid-range jumper, is everything rolls to the rim for him. Rolls to the rim, dives to the rim, you can go a little pick and pop handoff with him because he does handle the ball well for a big man. I think that's what has people so excited is that he can handle the ball a little bit. When you see a big able to get a rebound, go behind the back and make a play for someone else at 7-1, that's exciting. So I think the sky is totally the limit for him. I think over the next couple of years with coach Autry and the rest of the coaches, he's going to develop into a 4/5. His ability to get up and down the court is just mind boggling."