Syracuse Men’s Basketball season preview: Revamped roster gives coach Adrian Autry hope in second year
Revamped roster gives Syracuse coach Adrian Autry hope in second year
At Syracuse Men’s Basketball Media Day, coaches and players highlight roster changes for the upcoming season.
The Syracuse Men’s Basketball team heads their 2024-2025 media day, filled with a lot of new faces mixed with the veterans.
The team finished last season with a 20-12 record, one that was filled with wins against teams such as North Carolina at home, as well as losses to Boston College and Georgia Tech.
Syracuse’s program looks determined to turn it around and reach the NCAA Tournament, a thing they haven’t achieved since 2021.
“I know how to get back to the tournament, and that’s winning enough games,” Orange Head Coach Adrian Autry said. “This conference is no joke; you got to win the right games.”
Lampkin headlines strong transfer crew
The team brought talent through the portal, including center Eddie Lampkin Jr. The graduate student from Colorado brings experience from the NCAA Tournament.
“I know the small stuff you got to do to get there,” Lampkin said on making it back to the dance. “Helping this team make the tournament and taking advantage of my last year of basketball.”
Lampkin made the tournament with the Buffalo last season, scoring double digits in each postseason game, including 21 points in their win over Florida.
The senior also noted that he and his teammates have the ACC preseason rankings hanging up in their lockers, where the Orange was ranked 11th, for motivation.
Another guy who transferred in was guard Jaquan Carlos, who should be a playmaker at the wing.
“I’m excited to play with a selfless guy like him,” junior guard J.J. Starling said about Carlos and what he brings to the squad. “I’ve been guarding him throughout practice; iron sharpens iron.”
The team has filled itself with depth to replace Judah Mintz, Quadir Copeland, and Maliq Brown, who all started a majority of last season.
Freshmen Donnie Freeman, Elijah Moore, and Petar Majstorovic will all have roles in their collegiate debuts.
Majstorovic came to Syracuse after playing professionally in France and notes that he’s still adjusting.
“I’m still learning the rules, but I’m getting there,” he mentioned the changes between European and American basketball. “There’s a big difference in physicality here guys are already stronger.”
Syracuse returns two starters in Starling and Bell
These guys will mesh Coach Autry’s squad with the big pieces from last season.
Autry expects Starling, who averaged 13.3 points per game last season, to take a huge leap this season.
“I’m excited for him to break out and have that year everyone expects,” Autry said about his lead guard. “This team needs him.”
Another large piece that is returning to the squad is forward Chris Bell, who was a major component on the team last season defensively and shooting the ball.
“It’s just being confident,” Bell said about his jump from 35% to 42% from behind the arc. “Believing in the work that you do.”
The team also gets back an elite shot blocker in 7’4” Naheem McLeod, who posted 1.9 blocks in the 14 games he played.
“I’m 7 foot 4 for a reason”, McLeod said about his defensive presence and shot-blocking abilities. “Just to have [my teammates] back and help them out is all I care about.”
One of the large hopes for the team lies in Chance Westry, who missed the entire 23-24 campaign due to a knee injury after transferring from Auburn.
“I thought he was playing his best basketball towards the end of the summer,” Autry said about Westry and his hopes for him this season. “Having [Westry] back is going to be a huge addition for us.
Schedule ahead
The Orange have a tough schedule in front of them, both in and out of conference.
Colgate, a team that has given the Orange troubles in recent years, along with Texas in the Legends Classic, Tennessee, and rival Georgetown, all highlight the non-conference schedule.
Syracuse also got a tough draw in terms of traveling, as new ACC foes Stanford, California, and SMU are all road games this season.
These scheduling setbacks aren’t changing the mindsets in the locker room, though.
“We had a trip down to New York, we had a softball game,” Autry said about how the team’s mood can be upbeat coming into the season. “I wanted to get them prepared.”
With assistant coach Gerry McNamara taking the head coaching job at Siena College, Autry and his staff brought in former Mount St. Mary’s head coach Dan Engelstad to replace him.
“Our players love him, he will make his mark,” Autry said about Engelstad. “A person that is selfless, that cares about the program.”
Coach Autry says he will take what he learned from year one having full reigns, and that he’s ready for the upcoming season.
“I think the biggest thing has strong convictions on my whys,” Autry said. “Being more convinced in things that I want.”
Syracuse’s season opener will take place against Le Moyne in the JMA Wireless Dome on November 4th.