How are Syracuse players doing in the NBA?
Well, no former Syracuse players in the NBA are on the verge of breaking the all-time scoring record like LeBron James just did. But, nonetheless, let's check in and see how they've fared lately as the league approaches the unofficial halfway point of the season...
Buddy Boeheim. Boeheim still has not appeared in an NBA game for the Detroit Pistons since logging one minute on October 21. However, he's up to 10.7 points in 24.1 minutes per game for Detroit's G League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise. He is also connecting on 44 percent of his 6.6 3-point attempts per contest. Meanwhile, Detroit has the second worst record in the league. Despite being in the middle of a rebuild, the Pistons have not been able to find any court time for Boeheim.
Oshae Brissett. With each passing update, the Indiana Pacers continue to slide further and further down in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Their Cinderella story to start the season has faded and they now find themselves five games under .500 and in 11th place in the standings, just outside the play-in tournament. Brissett has not enjoyed the same playing time or success on the court as he did last season, when he played in 67 games (starting in 25) and scored in double figures 24 times. This season, Brissett has averaged 16.2 minutes per game and his scoring average is down from 9.1 points last season to just 5.6 points this season. He has scored in double figures just once in his last 19 games, going scoreless in twice as many games in that same stretch.
Jerami Grant. Portland now sits in a tie for 11th place in the Western Conference standings. However, it remains the "wild wild West" in that the difference between 11th and fourth place is just three and a half games. So, if Grant and the Trail Blazers can go on a run, their position in the standings could change dramatically. For his part, despite going through a bit of a lull so far in February (averaging just 13.5 points in four games this month), Grant is still about as steady as they come. For the third straight season, Grant has averaged right around 20 points and four rebounds a game. With his contract expiring at the end of the season, there will be no shortage of suitors in the offseason trying to obtain his services.
Cole Swider. After Swider appeared in four January games for the Los Angeles Lakers, he has not appeared in a game since January 24. On January 9, he tallied six points, five rebounds and three assists in 26 minutes. The combined totals in the other three January games? Nine minutes, three points and one rebound. The Lakers find themselves in 13th place in the West, two games out of the play-in tournament. But, reinforcements continue to file in for Los Angeles. After acquiring Rui Hachimura in late January, the Lakers added quality depth pieces this week in the form of D'Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt. All three were acquired in a three-team trade with Minnesota and Utah, where Los Angeles sent Russell Westbrook to the Jazz. Add it all up and the increased depth probably means there won't be many opportunities for Swider to sneak in the rotation as the Lakers make a final push for a playoff berth.
Oh...and Carmelo Anthony (who is ninth all-time on the NBA scoring list, 10,101 points behind James) remains at home and not in an NBA uniform.
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