If you haven’t seen this tweet and you’re caught off guard, you aren’t the only ones. On the rare occasion an NBA player with Draymond Green’s pedigree is tweeting about Syracuse Men’s Basketball, you know something wild must have happened. That’s exactly what happened in SU’s victory over NC State last night. You don’t need Draymond’s tweet to tell you that Bell was unconscious in the first half then disappeared coming out of the locker room. Take a moment to appreciate the sheer insanity that is that tweet.
If you watch the NBA or even loosely follow it, you know how polarizing a figure Draymond can be. He’s been an all-star four times, made eight all-defensive teams, has a defensive player of the year award to his name, and most importantly, has been a key cog in the Warriors’ dynasty over the last few years. But make no mistake, there is a very dark side to him. Suspensions and technical fouls are things Draymond has gotten accustomed to as his career has progressed. He is also a notorious loudmouth on various social media platforms, whether it be Twitter or an appearance on “Inside The NBA”. To say the least, he’s a character.
So why was he watching the Syracuse game in the first place? Draymond played his college ball at Michigan State from 2008-2012, and did go up against SU once in December 2010. The Orange and Spartans met in what was a top-10 matchup at the Jimmy V Classic in MSG with Syracuse emerging victorious. So there’s some connection but nothing major. And no disrespect intended, but SU’s game against NC State wasn’t exactly marquee, especially when the number one team in the country got blown out last night and there was a noteworthy incident after the game. At minimum, it’s neat that he was watching.
As for the tweet itself, Draymond is spot on. Syracuse built its 15-point first half lead thanks to Bell’s white hot shooting. Eight made threes is one shy of the program record, and he only needed 20 minutes to do it. It’s no coincidence that the Wolfpack rallied back and took a few leads in the second half when Bell’s shooting was not included in the offensive gameplan. If the ball bounces a few different ways in the second, NC State wins that game. Why abandon what worked so well in the first half?
The one other takeaway from this whole debacle? Don’t be fooled, SU is still a big name in the college basketball world. The success might not be what it is, but the Orange brand still holds a lot of luster.
Who knows if we’re ever going to get a popular NBA player tweeting about Syracuse again, especially one that didn’t go to school there and has little-to-no connection to the school. But whenever a Draymond Green of the world is talking about the Orange on Twitter, it’s noteworthy for sure.
