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Syracuse Basketball: Breakdown of Tyus Battle’s varying draft stock

By Rudi Richards

DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 14: Tyus Battle #25 of the Syracuse Orange drives against RJ Barrett #5 of the Duke Blue Devils during the first half of their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on January 14, 2019 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 14: Tyus Battle #25 of the Syracuse Orange drives against RJ Barrett #5 of the Duke Blue Devils during the first half of their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on January 14, 2019 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /
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SOUTH BEND, IN – JANUARY 05: Tyus Battle #25 of the Syracuse Orange grabs a rebound against Dane Goodwin #23 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the second half of the game at Purcell Pavilion on January 5, 2019 in South Bend, Indiana. Syracuse won 72-62. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
SOUTH BEND, IN – JANUARY 05: Tyus Battle #25 of the Syracuse Orange grabs a rebound against Dane Goodwin #23 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the second half of the game at Purcell Pavilion on January 5, 2019 in South Bend, Indiana. Syracuse won 72-62. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Tyus Battle NBA Draft Pros

The Syracuse shooting guard has a lot to like about his current game. Battle leads the Orange in scoring with 18.6 PPG, which although is down by 0.6 from last season, is an impressive average. With Frank Howard returning from injury, the likes of Jalen Carey improving, and the acquisition of Elijah Hughes, this Syracuse side is much stronger than that of last year – therefore, Battle has more talent to share possession with. The junior still leads the team in minutes per game, with 36.5, but hopefully with more talent, there will be more rest time coming up for Tyus, allowing him to thrive come the end of the year.

Although Battle only averages 1.9 APG, his passing abilities are developing nicely and as the focal point of this Syracuse offence, he will have plenty of time to thrive before the draft. Boeheim’s zonal defensive set will be important for Battle as he continues to make strides in becoming a reliable defender.

On an NBA roster, his experience of learning the defensive way of Boeheim will only be a positive thing. As mock drafts have him all over the place, some even leaving him go undrafted, we won’t know his stock for a significant period of time. However, ‘Cuse fans will tell you that he’s good enough for the NBA, although it’d be great to have him another year.

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