Jim Boeheim departs, Adrian Autry introduced in press conference

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Syracuse Athletics formally announced Adrian Autry as the eighth head coach of its men’s basketball team on Friday. The press conference followed a flurry of speculation around the completion of 47-year head coach Jim Boeheim’s career with the Orange. This was the first step out of the near 60-year career Boeheim has had with Syracuse basketball. Autry, the longtime assistant, associate head coach and former player of Boeheim, will now assume a program trying to reclaim its rank as a national powerhouse.

Though Boeheim’s tenure came to a tumultuous and confusing end, the former head coach is responsible for 35 NCAA Tournament appearances and the 2003 National Championship. Boeheim spoke before Autry, adding a formal goodbye to his nearly six-decade career, which ended on Wednesday with a bizarre press conference full of convoluted statements, followed up by a university press release that stated Boeheim would no longer be the head coach of the Orange.

He clarified the timeline of the last few days and gave full support to Autry, whom he said was at Syracuse to coach, rather than recruit. Here are three takeaways from the final press conference for Boeheim and the introduction of Autry.

How it all went down

The plan for Autry to take over has likely been in place for a few years, though John Wildhack referenced that there were a few other names of possible replacements who have since left. Boeheim said that, after coaching his sons — Jimmy and Buddy — last season, he felt like he wanted to coach the incoming class of six freshmen in 2022-23. The chancellor and Wildhack agreed, and Boeheim never thought about retirement during the course of the season, which he said was true of every year.

Then, the Orange took a massive dive at the end of the season, losing four straight games to Duke, Clemson, Pittsburgh and Georgia Tech. He felt that, after allowing 90+ points in three straight games and losing four straight by at least 17 points, he wasn’t coaching well, nor was his team playing the way it should.

“We lost those four games, and I felt like this was the time,” Boeheim said. He spoke with Wildhack about retirement on March 3, and the athletics department mobilized, preparing a statement and ironing out the details of his departure.

“I’m thankful for the chancellor and Wildhack’s unwavering support over these last few years, which have had good, but have also had some not great moments,” Boeheim said.

But his press conference after a 77-74 loss to Wake Forest in the second round of the ACC Tournament led to confusing statements about whether or not he was retiring. Boeheim said that he gave all the information he had and that there wasn’t a clear solution when he got into an exchange with reporters on his plans for next season. According to Wildhack, Boeheim then informed the team that he wasn’t returning next season once they returned to the hotel, spurring the release of the statement.

“Once we knew that information, I thought it was important to provide clarity,” Wildhack said. “Clarity to our, to our fans, clarity to our team in terms of the vision going forward for this program.”

What’s different about Autry?

Autry has been with the Orange as an assistant or associate head coach since 2011 after three years coaching high school and AAU basketball in Virginia Tech and five seasons under Seth Greenberg. He coached forwards for Syracuse, recruiting players such as Tyler Lydon, Jerami Grant, Oshae Brissett and Tyler Ennis during his time at SU. Wildhack described him as laid back, and several of his former high school players from Virginia described him as a player’s coach who can help teams get through the slog of seasons, especially ones that go poorly.

The new head coach said that he wants his team to be up-tempo, space the floor with its shooters, be aggressive and adapt on both ends. He said he’s spoken with the players — including Benny Williams and Chris Bell, who were absent from the introductory press conference — about the change, but is allowing them the usual end-of-season break before making any decisions about their futures. He also said that the transfer portal is a “great way to bring talent” for the Orange and something he’ll look at when it opens.

Though he didn’t say whether or not Syracuse would run the patented 2-3 zone that Boeheim created and kept throughout the entirety of his tenure, Autry hinted that the Orange would be versatile in their approach to defense.

“I am a new voice, a new face with new ideas. But the standards that have helped build this program will not change,” Autry said.

Wildhack, who has become known for continuity hires and internal promotions as Director of Athletics, said that Autry earned the position and didn’t get the promotion simply because he is an alumni or was the associate head coach. He said that there was no national search, and that the plan for Autry to take over preceded last Friday’s conversation with Boeheim. Autry stated that he still needed to work out his coaching staff, but referenced assistant head coaches Alan Griffin and Gerry McNamara as people he’s excited to be surrounded by.

Jim Boeheim bids adieu

Boeheim has stated that he didn’t want a farewell retirement tour like former rival coaches Mike Krzyzewski and Roy Williams. Though he did say that it was “unfortunate” that his final press conference was caught in the middle of him and the university figuring out specific details. Boeheim added that he is “thrilled to be retired,” and has felt better in the last two days than he has in 47 years. On Thursday, he sat down with Wildhack and Chancellor Kent Syverud for 45 minutes and worked out “most” of the details — the basics — of what the next steps for the former head coach.

Boeheim choked up when talking about coaching his two sons, a season he called “the biggest honor of my career,” along with the rest of his family. He said that his time at Syracuse nearly ended right as it began once former teammate Dave Bing scored 35 points on him in practice as a walk-on. Boeheim called his mother and said he was done, but she told him to stick it out, leading to a four-year career in which Boeheim became team captain. When he was vying for the head coaching position, Charlie Lee came down as the deciding vote on a five-person panel. By a 3-2 vote, Boeheim was hired after asking for four years and threatening to leave for the University of Rochester.

“I never left this school. I’m now 78 years old. I’m probably most happy that I will never leave here,” Boeheim said. “I’ll never leave Syracuse and I’ll never leave Syracuse University.”

Wildhack and Syverud both noted that they were excited to work with Boeheim moving forward. Boeheim said that Autry didn’t need “an older mentor” on the bench and that he was going to help out any way he could with the university from his “little office somewhere.” Wildhack hinted that the university had a $150 million fund for the athletics department when asked what Boeheim’s role would be moving forward. He said that Boeheim is one of the biggest lacrosse and football fans he knows, and they will put him to work promoting athletics overall.

Wildhack said that the program will “celebrate coach Boeheim in a big way.” He and Boeheim have had multiple conversations, he said, that allowed them to come to a conclusion that both parties are happy with.