Chris McCullough to return to Syracuse for sophomore season

Well, it's not all bad news in Syracuse.

Injured freshman Chris McCullough announced this week that he'll return to the Orange for his sophomore season next year.

McCullough underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL suffered on Jan. 11, ending his rookie campaign and potentially delaying the start of his sophomore season, depending on how his recovery progresses. 

Prior to the injury, McCullough projected as a potential first-round pick in the NBA Draft, something that was tenuous to hold true if he couldn't participate in pre-draft workouts. The injury knocked him to No. 40 on ESPN's top-100 and No. 52 on DraftExpress' board.

The 6-foot-10 power forward was averaging 9.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks before hitting the sidelines, shooting 47.8 percent from the floor and playing strong defense in Jim Boeheim's zone scheme.

The question McCullough's return puts a focus on is just how many new scholarships Syracuse will have to offer incoming freshman like Thomas Bryant, as the program lost three scholarships per year for the next four years as a part of NCAA sanctioning on Friday.