Syracuse head coach Quentin Hillsman tells all of his players to shoot whenever they’re open, no matter how much time is on the shot clock or where they are on the court.

This rule even applies to second-year center Maeva Djaldi-Tabdi, who attempted three 3-pointers in 34 games last year. Hillsman has given her the green light to shoot when she’s open.

“She doesn’t really like to shoot it,” Hillsman said, “but she’s a really good shooter.”

The 6-foot-2 redshirt sophomore has been working to expand her range to provide Syracuse with a more multidimensional offensive option at center. Through three games, she’s hit her first collegiate 3-pointer in two attempts from beyond the arc but has struggled inside. Djaldi-Tabdi is averaging four points per game — half of last season’s figure — but has shown potential on the offensive end.

“Hopefully, she will continue to take the shots when (she’s) open,” Hillsman said. “She doesn’t really like to shoot it, but she’s a really good shooter.”

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Over the summer, Djaldi-Tabdi worked to expand her offensive abilities outside the paint. She wanted to improve her face-up game and hone her jump shot. Last year, she led rotation players in field goal percentage (54.2%), taking most of her shots at the rim.

Djaldi-Tabdi represented her home country of France in the 2019 World Beach Games in Qatar, an international three-on-three tournament. With only six players on the court at once instead of 10, Djaldi-Tabdi had more room to operate.

She was forced to make quicker decisions because there was a 12-second shot clock, she said. Games were only played in the half court and scores were counted by ones and twos — pickup style. France took the gold medal, and when Djaldi-Tabdi returned to the team, forward Digna Strautmane said she would score in practice without “thinking about it twice.”

“That helped me learn how to actually get my shot off and not hesitate,” Djaldi-Tabdi said.

In the fourth quarter against Maryland-Eastern Shore on Nov. 12, Djaldi-Tabdi didn’t hesitate when she was open for 3-pointer, making the first shot in her college career from beyond the arc.

Point guard Kiara Lewis walked the ball up and swung it to freshman guard Taleah Washington on the right wing. Washington then sent a pass to Djaldi-Tabdi in the short corner. Djaldi-Tabdi’s defender never closed out and kept her arms by her sides, so Djaldi-Tabdi rose up with 19 seconds left on the shot clock to put the Orange up 21.

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Amaya Finklea-Guity said she’s envious of Djaldi-Tabdi’s “inside-out game,” and she’s trying to emulate it. But for now, both Djaldi-Tabdi and Finklea-Guity spend most of their time on offense in the dunker spot — the area on the baseline right outside the paint — waiting for dump-off passes or offensive rebound chances.

If Djald-Tabdi can become a consistent scoring threat from the perimeter, that opens up a new element to Syracuse’s pace-and-space offense, Hillsman said. If she can draw her defender out to the 3-point line, that pulls a shot-blocker away from the basket and opens up driving lanes for Orange guards.

Her other 3-point attempt this year came on SU’s final possession of the third quarter against Albany. SU ran a five-out set, placing all players along the perimeter and cycling them through the lane with off-ball cuts to the basket. Eventually, Djaldi-Tabdi caught the ball in the corner and shot a contested three with five seconds remaining. It rimmed out.

Despite the miss, she drew a defender away from the hoop. Her outside stroke allowed SU to go five-out, which only works when teams can put five shooters on the floor at once.

“I mean, right now, she’s 1-for-2,” Hillsman said. “Fifty percent. Hall of Fame, right?”

Published on November 20, 2019 at 9:51 pm

Contact Danny: dremerma@syr.edu | @DannyEmerman