Just like that, it’s on to the next one. With the Syracuse Orange women’s basketball team eliminated from the NCAA Tournament at the hands of UConn (unfortunately), the offseason is now officially in full swing.
Let’s be clear: there is a lot to sort out. Who will replace the scoring and general offensive usage of Dyaisha Fair? Where do Syracuse’s four new incoming recruits fit within the bigger picture? With the transfer portal now open, how should the Orange retool and how will coach Felisha Legette-Jack shape the roster over this crucial stretch? What does the current roster situation look like?
Regardless of what happens, expect an interesting next several weeks for the Orange. With that said, here is what you need to know about Syracuse’s outlook heading into the offseason.
The current roster
As of Tuesday night, Syracuse enters this week with 12 players currently on its roster. Eight of those players are returners while four players will join the program as first-years for the upcoming 2024-2025 season.
Of course, there’s some points to keep in mind. On paper, both Fair (graduate) and starting guard Alaina Rice (graduate) are each completely out of eligibility. Three of the other seniors — Cheyenne McEvans (senior), Izabel Varejão (graduate) and Dominique Camp (graduate) — all have pretty unique situations to monitor.
Both McEvans and Varejão each have the extra COVID year at their disposal for the 2024-25 season. If you recall, McEvans announced that she tore her right ACL in February 2023. At the time, she was ruled out for the remainder of the 2022-23 season and did not play at all in the 2023-24 season.
As for Varejão, she appeared in 17 games (seven as a starter) but missed over two months due to injury. What Varejão decides will certainly be a key decision to watch for. First-year center Marilena Triantafylli has https://twitter.com/goodmansport/status/1772674902216065143?s=46&t=IK7arFiGk84iQVX661dC7g the transfer portal — the first (and so far only) player for the Orange to do so.
Camp is currently listed as a graduate student, but according to cuse.com, she “plans to return” for the 2024-25 season. Camp was ruled out for the 2023-24 season due to injury and hasn’t played a single regular season game for the Orange yet.
In terms of new faces on the team, the following prospects are expected to join the Orange next year: Shy Hawkins, Keira Scott, Olivia Schmitt and Madeline Potts (who enrolled early and joined the program in the middle of this past season).
With all that in mind, here’s the current projected look at the Orange’s roster:
- Newcomers: Hawkins, Scott, Schmitt, Potts
- Returners: Camp, Georgia Woolley, Saniaa Wilson, Kyra Wood, Kennedi Perkins, Lexi McNabb, Sophie Burrows, Alyssa Latham
- Departures: Fair, Rice (out of eligibility); Triantafylli (transfer portal)
- To be determined: Varejão, McEvans
Team needs
Per wbbblog.com, Syracuse could have three open scholarship spots depending on the decisions of Varejão and McEvans. That begs the question: where should the Orange look to improve upon?
Finding a guard or two with some legitimate scoring pop should be a top priority for Legette-Jack, especially with Fair no longer on the team moving forward. Even with Fair, Syracuse certainly had its moments where the offense stalled and the scoring was hard to come by.
Woolley will certainly feature prominently in the offense, but the rest of the current guard rotation slots in more as complimentary pieces rather than as the main scorer and initiator. Fair and Rice are both gone, Camp is returning from injury, Potts and Schmitt are still unproven (for now) and Perkins has played her better off-ball than on-ball.
If Legette-Jack plans to aim for more experience and a chance at more guaranteed production, it would be through getting a guard or two from the portal — whether it be an all-around scorer, a legitimate playmaker who can create enough individual shots and /or a reliable outside movement shooter.
I’d imagine FLJ would also look to possibly add another wing. Syracuse currently boasts plenty of depth at the four and five, but the only three on the roster are essentially Scott and maybe Woolley if she slides down a position.
As always, we’ll have constant coverage throughout the next few weeks as more news breaks over the course of this offseason.
