Alan Griffin’s career at Syracuse is likely over after one season.
Griffin, who transferred last summer to SU from Illinois, plans to enter the draft and sign with an agent, according to a report from Adam Zagoria. He averaged 13.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game in 2020-21 in occasionally electric but often curious play.
When Griffin chose Syracuse, he was looking for a bigger role. He was among the most efficient scorers in the nation as a sophomore, but almost exclusively as a spot-up shooter off the bench for a loaded Illinois roster. SU gave the Ossining, New York, native more opportunity to make plays off the dribble.
Griffin emerged almost immediately as one of Syracuse’s best scorers. In SU’s first five games, he averaged a team-high 18.4 points per game. Then he was held scoreless in a slugfest against Northeastern, but bounced back with a 24-point, 10-rebound, three-block masterpiece that included the game — and season — saving block.
SU coach Jim Boeheim called the chasedown rejection “one of the best plays I’ve ever seen in here.”
Conference play was more tumultuous for Griffin. He had explosions of 28 and 26 points, but also duds of four and five. Griffin struggled to grasp the intricacies of the bottom of the 2-3 zone, but also recorded seven blocks in SU’s upset over Virginia Tech. He’d get to his spot on the elbow for turnaround jumpers, run the floor for highlight-reel finishes and swoop in for blocks, but also shoot ill-advised deep 3s and get caught too far away from the hoop defensively.
Even with the inconsistency, Griffin finished the regular season averaging 15.3 points and 6.6 rebounds per game and on the All-Atlantic Coast Conferene honorable mention team.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].