Andrew White Could Take Syracuse From Tournament Team to Final Four Contender

Gone are Syracuse's top three scorers from a season ago. Michael Gbinije and Trevor Cooney have graduated and Malachi Richardson departed after just one season under Jim Boeheim for the NBA. Combined, the troika of Orange departees connected on 262 made threes on the season.

As for the returning players? 51 made threes (49 from Tyler Lydon and 2 from Franklin Howard).

Traditionally Syracuse hasn't been the type of team to get three-point happy. Jim Boeheim has noted that he plans to get up and down a bit more next year, but SU still lacks outside shooting. Of course, Syracuse has added John Gillon to its backcourt as well as Tyus Battle. But neither Battle nor Gillon's modus operandi is the long ball. Gillon is an effective shooter whereas Battle is better from mid-range, but neither guy is a consistent threat from deep. I'm sure Howard has been working diligently on his jump shot, however, his strengths are better suited for running an offense, finding open teammates and shooting from 15 feet and in.

From the forward spots, Lydon is the only legitimate threat from outside and will be relied upon to take and make threes this season. Nevertheless, Syracuse still lacks a volume shooter (read: guy who can be relied upon to knock down two the three shots from outside per game). This is where Andrew White III comes into play.

White spent part of his weekend visiting Syracuse after announcing his intention to transfer from Nebraska. Usually when you hear the term 'volume shooter' you think of a chuck artist with poor shot selection, but this isn't always the case. Syracuse could use a volume shooter whose best attribute is his jump-shot -- someone who can knock down a couple shots from deep, per game.

White can certainly fill that void. He knocked down 87 threes last season while shooting 41.2 percent from deep. With a shooter in the fold and some insurance in the backcourt, White would join a team with veterans in Dajuan Coleman and Tyler Roberson, a shot blocker in Paschal Chukwu and a mixture of athletic wings and guards who have an array of skills. Syracuse can already contend for the Sweet 16 with its current roster, but adding a player like White would give it a chance to contend for a Final Four berth.

Louisville has also been in touch with White. He hails from Virginia so one could see why Louisville would an attractive landing spot, but with an NCAA investigation lingering and no guarantee of a post-season, we think Syracuse is a better landing spot for White (among other reasons).

Should White decide to commit to Syracuse, something tells me he'll be challenging Matt Moyer for that No. 3...