In the past, player defections, attitude problems and injuries have prompted Jim Boeheim to shuffle his starting lineup earlier than he would have liked. Louie McCroskey, Josh Wright and Billy Edelin are just a few examples, and those are only from the last seven years. Shortly into the 2008-09 season, Boeheim relegated fan favorite Kritof Ongenaet to the bench not because of any of the above problems, but simply because playing Rick Jackson gave the Orange a post threat to complement Arinze Onuaku without a significant dropoff on the defensive end.

Balancing the search of the optimal rotation with the need to develop younger players  is a goal of every coach in America in the non-conference portion of the season, though a lucky few have the recipe perfected from the first day of practice. In comparing Dion Waiters’ performance this season with Brandon Triche, it’s getting harder to believe with each passing game that Syracuse’s best chance to be successful involves Triche playing 25 or more minutes per game, as has been the case in all seven games this season.

In fairness, when you take a look at the season Triche has had, nothing jumps out that calls for his role to be sharply reduced. He’s a year up on Waiters in the experience column (for what that’s worth), he contributes modest scoring output, dives for loose balls and dishes out his fair share of assists. On defense, his length and size has been an important asset to the early season success SU has had in limiting their opponents to less than 60 points per game on just 36% shooting. He has that familial connection to the spectacular teams of the late 80′s and is a local player, which endears him easily to the Syracuse purists out there. There’s plenty to like about the guy.

But when Boeheim points to Waiters and he scores a quick 12 points in less than five minutes as he did against Georgia Tech in Atlantic City and keeps control of the ball despite his preference to run and get into the lane at will, the difference in play between the two guards becomes hard to ignore. In addition, Waiters gives SU a legit three-point threat in the backcourt who can also tread water defensively as he grasps the nuances of playing the front of the zone.

Tuesday against Cornell, Waiters played a season-high 20 minutes, while Triche played a personal season-low 23. The sophomore posted more turnovers against the Big Red (six) than Waiters has all season (five).  It’s no secret that Boeheim’s been loyal to Triche from day one, naming him the starter as soon as Johnny Flynn got both feet out the door. However, the Professor has also called him out publicly on more than one occasion as someone who hasn’t been as assertive and confident as he needs to be in the early going. In Waiters, who came to SU accustomed to staying on the floor as much as humanly possible, you have a player with intrinsic motivation to shine and the talent to elevate his role. Complimentary players throughout the years have rightfully stated that they’ll embrace such a role if it helps the team win, gets them to where they want to be in the end and all the other factory-produced quips they’re trained to say. Just seven games in, we’ve learned that Dion Waiters is not that kind of player. It kills him to come off the bench.

I’ve mentioned in this space before that who starts and who doesn’t isn’t nearly as important as simply maximizing the overall distribution of playing time for the best players. Anyone who watched Craig Forth patrol the paint for the Orange can attest to that, as can those who fell in love with Kristof Ongenaet’s defensive intensity. We’re even going through that process with Fab Melo’s development at present. Still, there is something to be gained for helping your team get off to a good start, as was the case in the aforementioned Ongenaet-Jackson switch. It’s becoming clear that Waiters can ignite that spark in a way that Triche hasn’t.

NC State and Michigan State are already less than a week away. The closing gap in playing time between the guards is something to keep a very close eye on in those games and beyond, and with Triche struggling to find his niche in the offense and Boeheim starting to lose patience, Waiters is getting his window.

The 2009-10 season was an unforgettable one for Steve Donahue’s Cornell squad. On their way to a Sweet 16 berth, including a tournament game in Syracuse, the Big Red beat Alabama, UMass, Temple, Wisconsin, St. John’s and put a scare into Kansas on the Jayhawks’ home floor.

Once the season ended, however, things changed in a way that is to be expected from successful teams from non-Power Six conferences: The robust senior class led by Ryan Witman, Louis Dale and Jeff Foote graduated. Donahue made a major leap to helm the program at Boston College. Back in Ithaca, in stepped Bill Courtney from Virginia Tech and several players began the transition from bench player to starter. This team is night and day from last season’s squad.

At 2-4, Cornell has lost some close games and gutted out a couple decent, but no one they have played to this point has the firepower of their tough schedule from last season. Despite the non-con sluggishness by SU, Tuesday night’s game against the Orange presents one of the toughest challenges the Big Red will face all season, the other being upstart Minnesota later this week.

Like last season, this edition of Cornell is more comfortable in a game at a slow-to-moderate pace, not forcing themselves into a track meet. They average around 70 possessions in each of their last four games, a rate that keeps them fresh on defense, where they have allowed just 66 points per game. They’ve also let up less than one point per defensive possession in all but one contest so far (a loss to Seton Hall).

The key for SU is to get Cornell running more than they want to with defensive pressure to create turnovers and easy transition opportunities. The Orange will also be able to get ahead by cleaning up on the glass like they should (the Big Red averages a measly 28.5 rebounds per game). However, SU must balance their comfort running with smart decisions from Scoop Jardine, who runs the backcourt. Scoop has shot just 8-37 in his last three games; while SU is trying to find scoring consistency, I’m fairly confident that Jardine putting up 12 shots a game isn’t going to improve the team in the long run. Brandon Triche also needs to continue to be assertive. Against Georgia Tech, he posted his highest scoring total since his 16-point game against Canisius, which came on the heels of Jim Boeheim calling for him to be more aggressive.

In the frontcourt, look for Kris Joseph to become more consistent when matched against undersized 6’4 senior Max Groebe. In the paint, Rick Jackson should have a field day with Adam Wire, who hardly qualifies as a forward checking in at 6’5. While bigger opponents will eventually mitigate Baye Moussa Keita’s effectiveness, Tuesday will not be one of those times. The mismatches across the paint way so heavily in SU’s favor that even Fab Melo should be able to make some kind of positive impact.

Seven months and seven days after the final horn sounded in Salt Lake City to send SU home, we’re finally set for the 2010-11 season to get underway. For fans and followers, it’s the first chance to see Kris Joseph as THE man, to get the first look at Fab Melo patrolling the paint 14 months after committing to Syracuse and several accolades in the meantime; to see how the guard rotation of Scoop Jardine, Brandon Triche and Dion Waiters will shake out, and to see the green flag wave on the race for 7th man between Mookie Jones, James Southerland and darkhorse freshman CJ Fair.

It may be an exhibition game, but if I learned anything from last season, it’s that even though preseason games like tonight’s tilt against Kutztown won’t count in the standings, they’re still important to the development of the team.

Usually, exhibition games present the opportunity for a coach to bring in a former player or assistant getting his feet wet in coaching with a small program like Kutztown, based 220 miles from Syracuse. However, there aren’t any such connections to be found between the Orange and the Golden Bears – but there is one player worth pointing out to ‘Cuse fans: Devon McBride (who wears 44 on his jersey – it’s like he wants the pain to rain down on him Tuesday night), not to be confused with former Syracuse “center” Devin Brennan-McBride, whose pinnacle as a member of the Orange came when he could be accurately described as Matt Gorman’s backup in 2006-07.

Man, those days were rough.

As for the Golden Bears, they’ve been picked to finish third in Division-II’s Pennsylvania State Athletics Conference’s (PSAC) East Division, if you care about that sort of thing. Kutztown will rely on junior guard Julius Gray and junior Eric Brennan (that’s right – a Brennan AND a McBride) to outperform last season’s 23-8 record, which ended in a first-round loss in the D-II Tournament.

Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. EST.