While losing a player of Greene's ability cannot be overlooked, I'm one of the many who feel that the SU basketball team will be just fine without him. We still have plenty of weapons, we've got plenty of shooters and the Flynn-Harris connection is set to flourish (imo). If Donte truly was worried about getting his shots and keeping a high profile for his draft status, all parties really are better off. That said, it may take a while to convince the world at-large that this is the case. ESPN's Andy Katz has just posted his 2nd preseason poll and Syracuse isn't on it. That's curious because, as Mike Waters noted earlier, Syracuse was on his initial poll at #18. At the time, Donte was still possibly a member of the Orange.
As I said before last season, I have no problem with being unranked to start the season. It allows us to skim under the radar. Keeps just a little bit of pressure off so the team can gel without the ever-watching gaze of ESPN and the national media upon it. At least until January.
The good news (or bad news, depending on how you look at it) for the Big East is that there are three conference teams in his Top 10, five in his Top 15 and seven in the Top 25. Counting the "also under consideration" teams (which includes SU), that's 9 conference teams listed. The conference is, for all intents and purposes, loooooooaded.