Ennis was a freshman for the Orange this season and averaged 12.9 points and 5.5 assists in leading the team to a No. 1 ranking for part of the winter and to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Syracuse lost in the round of 32 to the Dayton Flyers, a game in which Ennis scored 19 points and helped rally the team from a persistent deficit but missed 7-of-21 shots — including two at the end that could have won the game.
Ennis was a 41 percent shooter from the field and 35 percent from 3-point range. He is 6-2, so not overly big for the point guard position, and does not present as a player with elite athleticism or quickness. He is a capable, willing passer but has not shown extraordinary creativity.
"He is fundamentally sound as a ballhandler and sees the floor well, though what most notice about him on the court is the steadiness which he displays," Ed Issacson of the NBA Draft Blog told SN. "Ennis protects the ball well and will generally look to make the safe pass instead of trying to force the action. That's all good, but he still has yet to show many of the skills needed by NBA point guards.
"Ennis hasn't shown to be much of a playmaker and with Syracuse's offense not featuring many high screen situations, it is unknown how Ennis will do making reads quickly against NBA level defenders. Defensively, Ennis hasn't shown how he'll handle guarding in man situations, and the little clues we have from watching his movements in the zone say he needs a good deal of work.
"He doesn't have the strength yet to finish around the basket, though I give him credit for already working on a floater, a shot necessary for many guards his size. His perimeter shooting is inconsistent, but I don't think he'll need much work to fix this. None of this is to say Ennis is "bad", I just believe he has the makings of a backup point guard in the NBA right now."
And yet excitement over his out-of-nowhere freshman success propelled him up the mock draft boards.
On ESPN.com, analyst Chad Ford projects Ennis to fall just outside the top 10 in June's draft.
So if the mocks are right, is it better to get into the draft now and perhaps become a lottery pick or return and risk failing to improve as a shooter and creator?
Thursday afternoon, Ennis gave everyone his answer. He becomes the third Syracuse freshman to file for early entry, following Carmelo Anthony in 2003 (who became an NBA All-Star) and Donte Greene in 2008 (who was waived out of the league last fall).
"I'd like to thank Coach Boeheim, the coaching staff, my teammates and the amazing fans of Syracuse for the opportunity to play at a great university like Syracuse," Ennis said in the school's release. "I feel this experience has helped prepare me to fulfill my lifelong dream — to play in the NBA."
