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Syracuse bolsters perilously thin backcourt with marquee late addition

Andrew White announced Sunday he'll transfer to Syracuse (AP)
Andrew White announced Sunday he’ll transfer to Syracuse (AP)

Almost four months after learning that Malachi Richardson would stay in the NBA draft, Syracuse finally found a suitable replacement.

The Orange on Sunday received a commitment from the last marquee graduate transfer still on the market this offseason.

Andrew White III, who averaged 16.6 points per game at Nebraska last season, announced on Twitter that he will spend his final year of college at Syracuse. The 6-foot-7 wing also visited Miami, Michigan State and Virginia Commonwealth.

The addition of White is massive for a Syracuse team that has only three other perimeter players on its roster. The Orange were very thin at guard after Michael Gbinije and Trevor Cooney graduated, Kaleb Joseph transferred in search of more playing time and Richardson parlayed a strong postseason into becoming a first-round draft pick.

What White gives Syracuse is a proven perimeter scorer capable of attacking the rim off the dribble or knocking down jumpers from behind the arc. White took more shots than any other Nebraska player last season and sank a lot of them — 41.2 percent of his 3-pointers and 55.7 percent of his twos.

Having White will also provide Jim Boeheim more options in terms of how to play next season.

Now Boeheim can go to a three-guard look with White and freshman Tyus Battle at wing alongside either Franklin Howard or Colorado State transfer John Gillon at point guard. Boeheim can also go bigger, bring Battle off the bench and use stretch forward Tyler Lydon at the three instead of the four.

Regardless of how Syracuse chooses to play, it now has a roster formidable enough to contend in the ACC next season and perhaps even make a run at a second consecutive Final Four. The Orange should start in the preseason top 20 this November and could rise higher than that if their new and returning talent meshes to form a cohesive team.

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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!