Syracuse Basketball: Orange can survive without Darius Bazley

In an unexpected move, five-star prospect Darius Bazley will not be going to Syracuse. How big of a blow is this for Syracuse?

Very few players did more for their individual team this season than Tyus Battle, Oshae Brissett, and Frank Howard. The three athletes each played over 38 mpg, which ranked each of them in the top-10 nationally in minutes played. They also were the only players who averaged more than 5.8 ppg on the season.

For most of the season, Jim Boeheim played just six or seven guys in a single game. Yet despite the limited depth, the Orange somehow won three games in the NCAA Tournament, making it to the Sweet Sixteen.

What has to make fans of Syracuse more excited is that barring transfers of players going pro, everyone that played a decent role for the team will return. 6’8 forward Matthew Moyer has elected to transfer, but the team was supposed to get a top-10 recruit that could easily take his place.

Darius Bazley was the perfect player for Syracuse’s system. He’s 6’9, has a big wingspan and more than capable and providing more scoring to make the team much more balanced.

But the McDonald’s All-American made a decision to skip college entirely, becoming the first player to go from high school to the G-League. It’s another unexpected loss for the Orange, who lost another good recruit in Taurean Thompson last summer when he transferred to Seton Hall.

Now while the overall ceiling for next season will be lowered by this decision, it doesn’t mean that Syracuse will take a step back. They still bring back over 90% of their scoring from this year, and freshmen Bourama Sidibe and Marek Dolezaj will take a bigger role next season after learning the system for a year. Top-75 recruit Jalen Carey will come in as a quality backup point guard and give Howard and Battle some rest.

Next: Did Syracuse have the biggest transfer bust this season?

Because Bazley was never on the roster, this wasn’t actually a loss for the team. Syracuse also still has a chance to acquire more talent as the transfer market is still very early. The Orange are still going to be one of the top teams in the ACC next season, regardless of whether a top-tier recruit arrives or not.