Josh Pace never took a jump shot in college. I mean, maybe he did, but it happened so infrequently that no one remembers what it looked like. Pace did have this smooth, left-handed floater that he used for every shot that wasn’t a layup or dunk. It was basically his only offensive move.
In case you have no idea who Josh Pace is, he was a pretty good role player for Syracuse in the early 2000s. He notably played alongside Carmelo Anthony while in college and replaced him the following season.
His college career concluded in 2005 with a fairly unremarkable average of 7.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. As you’d expect, he was an awful free throw shooter, bricking his way to an Andre Drummond-esque 50 percent from the charity stripe.
But what makes Josh Pace special is how he would get those 7.3 points. They came almost exclusively from his floater. Here it is in all its glory.
Over the course of his college career, Pace took a total of 20 three pointers, making two. And 50 percent of the makes and attempts came as a freshman. Despite the fact everyone on the court knew Josh Pace was going to go left and shoot a floater in the key, it was hard stop.
There were even weird times when a floater was probably the most inefficient shot to take, but Pace would still jack it up anyway. Here he is posting someone up only to force a very awkward looking floater.
Check it out: Does this basketball shot go in?
Josh Pace beats the buzzer
The absolute best Josh Pace floater came in a 2004 matchup between Syracuse and Michigan State. The Orange are up by eight with two seconds left in the first half and must get the ball to the other end of the floor in order to get a shot up. Somehow Pace soars to catch this wild full-court pass, has his back to the basket as he comes down with the ball and still manages to get his patented floater off before halftime. It’s a thing of beauty.
What happened after college?
Josh Pace went undrafted in 2005 and never played in the NBA which is a shame. He did have a ten-year career overseas, spending most of his time in New Zealand. He then went into coaching women’s basketball and is now the head coach of Western New Mexico.
However, his legacy will always be that of the incredible non-jump shooting player at Syracuse. It’s unthinkable today in an era when everyone shoots that there used to be players who literally didn’t have a jumper.
