Pitarresi: A sharper Flynn would help SU

 

They weren’t having any party in the Syracuse University’s basketball locker room this afternoon.

 

The Orange looked bad in losing 67-57 to Louisville, and the loss was made worse by the fact that it is the third in four games.

 

But the Big East is a meat grinder league. Look at Georgetown, which a couple of weeks ago I thought might have been the toughest if not the best team in the league. The Hoyas lost to Seton Hall today.

 

The Orange remain a very talented team with some holes in its game – again, rebounding and ball security are issues – and maybe a little chemistry problem, although trying to find out just what that might be is difficult to pinpoint. One thing that would make the team better is better command by Jonny Flynn. A couple of months ago, Flynn was one of the top few point guards in the nation and some scouts had him headed to the NBA, maybe as soon as next year. Neither of those things are true right now.

 

Although he’s just a sophomore, Flynn has played a ton of basketball. He has to be a little better leader, a little better shooter, a little better decision maker. That’s not to put it all on him. Every guy on the team can do many things better, but he is the quarterback and has been since the first day he stepped on the court last season. He can have an ordinary game now and then in terms of leadership, scoring and passing, but if he has a bad one, it is very difficult to SU to win.

 

Again, not to put too much on the kid. He’s playing 38, 39 minutes a game and working his butt off, but he has to be sharp.

 

Or maybe SU is a year away from a really big run.