Devo-stating

As you probably already know by now, for the second time in two years it appears Eric Devendorf's basketball season will most likely end before Syracuse makes it to Big East play. Devendorf was found guilty today of violating the University's student conduct code after an incident with a female student in the early morning hours of November 1st.

While he can still appeal the decision and remain in the University and play while the process plays out, obviously this isn't good for him or the team.

The incident was the latest in a disturbing series of events basketball team members have been involved with over the past two years. While none of us have any knowledge of what happened in any of these circumstances, accusations of sexual assault and violence against women certainly signal a lack of control on the part of the coaching staff -- or at the very least an inability for them to get through to team that they have to stop putting themselves in these situations.

In the last year a player was suspended for using a stolen meal card, three players were accused of sexual assault and Devendorf was suspended for pushing a woman in the face. If this keeps up, the program is on the road to being UNLV from the early nineties......without the success on the court.

On the court Devendorf is a polarizing figure and there will surely be some people who will spout off about how the team will be better off without him. Frankly, that's bullshit. Just because he was punk on the court and turned it over more than he should, he was the difference last year between playing in the NCAA's and the NIT. He's a player that could score off the dribble, he's fearless in the lane, not afraid to take and make big threes and he's a guy other teams had to stop.

You don't lose a player of his caliber and GET BETTER. It does not happen. The team was off to a terrific start with him and he was getting better every game. So I don't care what anyone says, they were playing as a team and winning with him. They won't win as many without him.

How it shakes out both in the appeals process and on the court remains to be seen, but here are a few ramifications of a team without Devendorf.

1) All that talk of Jonny Flynn getting a few minutes of rest this year - you can forget about it. Devendorf was slated to be his primary back up while Flynn was on the bench. In the games played this year with Devo Flynn was already playing big minutes, without him, expect a repeat of last year's iron man performance from Jonny.

The loss of Scoop Jardine this year exacerbates the problem, because he can handle the point guard duties in a pinch. I wouldn't expect Andy Rautins or Justin Thomas to be bringing the ball up the floor versus a Big East opponent. Stay healthy and stay in shape Jonny.

2) Mookie Jones better get ready to play and Boeheim better get comfortable getting him some minutes. Jones was a fantastic high school player stuck who happened to be stuck on the bench of a deep team to start his career. The kid can play, SU will need him. The question remains, will Boeheim trust him? If he doesn't, this is a 7 man team that will be playing a ton of zone again - in other words, it's last year all over again.

3) The Waffle will need to finish. Kristof Ongenaet has been starting, but playing limited Craig Forth minutes. His hustle and rebounding have been great, but his ability to finish around the rim has been terrible so far. He'll be on the floor more and he needs to at least make his put backs because with him on the floor, SU is almost playing 4 on 5 on the offensive end. We all love the waffle, but it's now or never for him.

There is no doubt that Syracuse can still have a very successful season, but it probably won't be as good as it COULD have been. As a fan, it's just a sad, disappointing, frustrating outcome. There have been too many of these lately.