Syracuse Basketball is undergoing a roster upheaval. How much of an impact will it have on next season for the Orange?
Brycen Goodine announced that he was transferring from Syracuse Basketball following the completion of the semester on his twitter account.
“I would like to thank the Syracuse staff and fans for having me at the University this year. However, it is time for me to seek out a new beginning. Thank you, Syracuse!”
Goodine appeared in 23 of the Orange’s 32 games this year, which included making an appearance in each of the team’s last 10 games. The 6-3 shooting guard averaged 1.9 points and one rebound as he shot just 30% from the field overall. While the New Bedford (Mass.) native — who missed three games as a result of a broken nose — didn’t reach double-figures, he did come big up against Wake Forest as his putback at the buzzer gave SU a 75-73 win on Feb. 8.
While Goodine just filed his paperwork on Friday, he has already heard from a couple of schools.
“I’m still not sure where I’m going right now,” Goodine told Mike Waters of Syracuse.com. “I want to take this time to finish up strong with school and see what happens after that.’’
Goodine was a consensus top 100 player in the class of 2019. ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports Composite all had him rated as a four-star prospect and ranked among the top 100 players in the country. Meanwhile, he was rated as a three-star recruit at No. 153 overall by 247Sports. Goodine chose Syracuse over offers from over Boston College, Cal, UConn, Florida, Miami, Pittsburgh, and Stanford, among others.
Wherever the St. Andrews product ends up, he should have plenty of success. Goodine is a natural scorer who is not only a pure shooter from the perimeter but also has the ability to score from the mid-range and at the rim. He will have three years of eligibility left.
Jalen Carey and Howard Washington also departing from SU
One day after Goodine made his decision to leave Syracuse, guards Jalen Carey and Howard Washington have also entered into the transfer portal, according to Michael McAllister of 247Sports.
Carey started the first two games this year at point guard before giving way to freshman Joe Girard III. The 6-3 sophomore, who played those games with a thumb injury, ultimately decided to have surgery on the thumb and took a redshirt for the season. He finished the year with three points, six rebounds, one assist and three turnovers in 23 minutes of action.
Carey averaged 3.5 points, 1.6 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 1.6 turnovers while shooting 39.2% from the field and 17.4% from beyond the arc in 25 appearances, including two starts, in 2018-19. He scored in double-figures in back-to-back games against UConn (26) and Oregon (14) in early November but struggled with turnovers as he finished with more turnovers than assists (41-to-25).
Carey was rated 52nd in RSCI and was a consensus four-star prospect. ESPN had the Harlem (NJ) ranked 38th in the class, Rivals had him at No. 53, and 247Sports Composite listed him at 61st. He chose the Cuse over offers from Connecticut, Arizona, Miami, Florida, Indiana, Minnesota, Notre Dame, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Seton Hall, Texas, Villanova, and many others. Carey will have three years of eligibility remaining.
Washington has overcome a lot during his playing career at Syracuse, including a stroke and was the recipient of the Bob Bradley Courage Award this year. Washington has seen sparse action during his three seasons at SU, including this past season, where he saw an average of 7.4 minutes in 20 appearances. He averages 1.0 points on 27.3% shooting from the floor and 15.3% from the 3-point line in 40 career appearances.
The Buffalo (NY) native was a three-plus star recruit out the Athlete Institute Basketball Academy. Washington was rated as a three-star prospect by Rivals, 247Sports and 247Sports Composite. Meanwhile, ESPN gave him a four-star rating. He is expected to be considered a grad transfer, although the 6-3 guard should have two seasons of eligibility remaining.
Former walk-on Brendan Paul is expected to leave the program, per Matthew Guitterez of The Athletic tweeted out. The 6-2 sophomore guard has appeared in 16 games over the last two seasons, with nine appearances coming this past season though he never saw over two minutes of playing time.
Robert Braswell could also leave
Guitterez added that
might also leave, although he is believed to be the least likely of the five players to move on. Braswell was plagued by
this past season, which ultimately made him decide to shut down his season prematurely. Braswell has filed for a hardship waiver to get the season back.
The 6-7 forward finished the campaign averaging 1.7 points and 1.1 rebounds while shooting 44.4% from the field and 66.7% from beyond the arc in less than seven minutes of action over seven games. He saw action in 12 games as a freshman.
What do the losses mean to Syracuse?
It depends on what star Elijah Hughes ultimately decides to do. It is most likely that he will ultimately bolt for the NBA Draft so the losses would cause some depth concerns especially in the backcourt. The loss of Goodine would hurt the most due to his potential, although Carey did show flashes of brilliance in his freshman year. However, Girard proved that he is more than capable of handling the point, and Buddy Boeheim is one of the best shooters in the conference. The departures of the four guards leave the backcourt kind of bare with Boeheim, Girard, and incoming 4-star freshman Kadary Richmond as the only players that can play either the 1 or 2.
If Braswell left as well, and he was going to be fully healthy, it could devastate the Orange depth as the Jacksonville native is exceptionally long and can flat out shoot it. SU, which also has signed 6-8 forward Woody Newton, is expected to have two more scholarships available for this upcoming season. The Orange are reportedly in pursuit of Columbia center Patrick Tape and Harvard swingman Seth Towns, Jr.
Tape sat out last season after deciding to transfer in October. The 6-11 center produced 11.3 points along with 5.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks as a junior. Towns, who was the Ivy League MVP in 2017-18, also sat out this past campaign. He averaged 16 points, 5.7 caroms, and 2.1 3-pointers while shooting 41.9% from the field along with 44.1% from beyond the arc. Towns is also reportedly considering Kansas, Virginia, Ohio State, Michigan, and Maryland.