In Praise of JB

[Townie72]

Up until the last few years, I have never been a huge Boeheim fan. I loved the teams, and the players and the results, but I never warmed up to Boeheim personally.

I admired his loyalty to SU and to Upstate NY and the fact that he favored giving coaching jobs to SU alums. But I also thought he was a ultra-competitive prxck, who gave guarded, non-responsive answers to the press just like all the rest of them.

But increasingly since 2003, we have been able to see the “real” Jim Boeheim as his success has freed him to be himself and to speak his mind.

He just isn’t going to be fired from SU ever. And he’s achieved just about everything he can starting with the NC, 900+ wins, a ridiculously long skein of 20+ win seasons, the HOF , etc. A couple of more NCs would be nice, but the general shape of the guy’s “total body of work” is already established.

So now, I listen intently to every word the guy utters. And what he says is loaded with good stuff. His comments this AM about near parity in college BB weren’t just him seeking advantage or preparing fans for a future possible SU loss or losses. He’s telling people what the real deal is. There has rarely been a time when there are so many good teams out there, so prepare yourself for the tourney because nobody knows what is going to happen.

In watching that show this AM I was struck by the obvious respect that Mike and Mike had for the guy. They know --- because they are in that business --- that JB is a straight-shooter and a good guy. Golic had tweaked him earlier about the SU v. ND game. JB’s parting words to Golic was that he admired Golic’s loyalty. And he did. Because JB is now all about telling the truth not greasing the skids. In sports and politics, the guy is almost unique.

 

[Marsh01]

Glad you finally came around!

 

[CaptainJ]

JB’s parting words to Golic was that he admired Golic’s loyalty.

JB is all about loyalty. One of my favorite recent memories of him was telling that fellow with the perpetual grin that he was "really a disloyal person"

 

[HOFCeluck]

So now, I listen intently to every word the guy utters. And what he says is loaded with good stuff. His comments this AM about near parity in college BB weren’t just him seeking advantage or preparing fans for a future possible SU loss or losses. He’s telling people what the real deal is. There has rarely been a time when there are so many good teams out there, so prepare yourself for the tourney because nobody knows what is going to happen.

Hope Bilas didn't hear that...

 

[Garbs]

he and Belichick are so alike

 

[kuethstheman]

Great post, though it doesn't change the fact that he's an ultra-competitive prxck.

 

[realorange]

Great post, though it doesn't change the fact that he's an ultra-competitive prxck.

if he wasn't ultra-competitive he'd never have been at SU all his life or won 900+ games.

 

[CuseFaninVT]

Up until the last few years, I have never been a huge Boeheim fan. I loved the teams, and the players and the results, but I never warmed up to Boeheim personally.


So now, I listen intently to every word the guy utters. And what he says is loaded with good stuff. His comments this AM about near parity in college BB weren’t just him seeking advantage or preparing fans for a future possible SU loss or losses. He’s telling people what the real deal is. There has rarely been a time when there are so many good teams out there, so prepare yourself for the tourney because nobody knows what is going to happen.

I have to admit I used to think his quick hooks were bad for player recruitment and development and his stubbornness could lead to bad game decisions, but I was young then.

I also think the discussion about parity now is a bit of a shot at the current system of allowing really good players to leave early (too early in my mind). He discussed how during the old games you'd have 8 or more NBA players on the floor. I think he is saying if we want to get back to college hoops being great with really great teams (not just a lot of really good teams) we need to address the one and done travesty.

P.s. - I think we give Dickie V's system a try - if a player is a once in a lifetime guy like Melo or Lebron, let them go straight to the pros. But the kids who go to college stay at least 3 years. It would help both leagues immeasurably.

 

[moqui]

His comments this AM about near parity in college BB weren’t just him seeking advantage or preparing fans for a future possible SU loss or losses. He’s telling people what the real deal is. There has rarely been a time when there are so many good teams out there, so prepare yourself for the tourney because nobody knows what is going to happen.

Maybe, but it also serves to continue his push for expanding the tournament to 96 teams.

overall, though, I disagree with your sentiment. JB is not a straight shooter - he says what he needs to say in the moment, and he'll say something different 15 minutes or 15 weeks later. He is deceptive when he wants to be, dismissive when that suits him, and derisive if he's got nothing else. I love JB, but my eyes are also wide open.

 

[stuckinbig11]

So now, I listen intently to every word the guy utters. And what he says is loaded with good stuff. His comments this AM about near parity in college BB weren’t just him seeking advantage or preparing fans for a future possible SU loss or losses. He’s telling people what the real deal is.

'bout time you did--not only a straightshooter, but a basketball genius

 

[domestu]

I have to admit I used to think his quick hooks were bad for player recruitment and development and his stubbornness could lead to bad game decisions, but I was young then.

I also think the discussion about parity now is a bit of a shot at the current system of allowing really good players to leave early (too early in my mind). He discussed how during the old games you'd have 8 or more NBA players on the floor. I think he is saying if we want to get back to college hoops being great with really great teams (not just a lot of really good teams) we need to address the one and done travesty.

P.s. - I think we give Dickie V's system a try - if a player is a once in a lifetime guy like Melo or Lebron, let them go straight to the pros. But the kids who go to college stay at least 3 years. It would help both leagues immeasurably.

I have to admit I used to think his quick hooks were bad for player recruitment and development and his stubbornness could lead to bad game decisions, but I was young then.

I started going to college basketball games in the 1950s and have seen the game explode in popularity from a small but fanatical number of hoops junkies in a few pockets of the country into a nationwide sport with millions of followers. Many changes have taken place in the game during that time and most of those changes that really improved the game were resented by the majority of fans when they took place.

Whenever new rules and new trends have taken place, they were followed by debates among basketball fans that went on for years. The game has always survived these changes and it continued to grow in popularity throughout every decade that I have watched it.

College hoops is currently facing a new challenge that is undermining many long-held traditions of the game but I believe that it will adapt and survive. As a basketball fan, I dislike many aspects of our move to the ACC but I understand the overall context of why we made it. I will always miss what we had in the Big East and don't expect to ever have the kind of feelings I had for our old conference. But I learned a long time ago that things are always moving forward and you can't dwell on the past.

The biggest problem that college coaches have to deal with today is the constant turnover of players and it isn't just the one-and-done stars going to the NBA. Most of the SU players who have departed early in recent years have left after two years and we are probably going to see Grant go pro this spring. The player personnel turnover becomes much larger when you add in the huge increase in recent years of players transferring from one school to another.

The old system where you built a team solely by recruiting high school players no longer exists. I watched a quarterback who was a college transfer win the Super Bowl last weekend. We have seen transfers win the Heisman in recent years. Buzz Williams has been successful bringing in junior college players. College basketball recruiting has been transformed by these changes and how individual coaches adapt to this new situation will determine how well their teams do.

When I hear college guys like Dick Vitale say that the NBA and the colleges should work out a system that keeps players in college for a minimum of two or three years, I understand that he is only looking at this from a perspective that strengthens college hoops. As much as I would enjoy watching better college teams with veteran stars, I realize this is not going to happen. Things move forward in life and the NCAA is not going to be able to turn the clock back and initiate a rule like this. It would be challenged in the courts and many of the top high school players would choose playing in a newly formed minor league over being forced to playing three years in college.

I loved the time when players spent four years playing for college teams but those days are over. How many four-year players have been selected in the first round of the NBA draft in recent years? The number of good four-year players who go on to have long NBA careers in rapidly dwindling. Hakim Warrick might be the last one Syracuse has that does that.

The player personnel movement that exists in college hoops today is something we are going to have to live with. I'm just glad that I follow a team that has adapted to this current far better than others. Our coaching staff has done a better job adjusting to this than other top hoops programs. I often wonder how many SU fans realize just how much they have excelled in dealing with this new environment.

Today's player turnover in college hoops has resulted in a different quality of play in the college game and I don't know many college coaches who are handling this new scenario better than Jim Boeheim. Going with a six man lineup would have resulted in quite a few losses back in the 1980s and our 2-3 zone would never have been as effective fifteen years ago when teams had veteran players taking shots from the perimeter.

Go Cuse!

 

[two3zone]

Professionally I think is is awesome and wouldn't trade him for anybody in the history of basketball coaches (NBA included).


Personally I think he is a douche, I've tried for 3 years to get a photo with him "not even an autograph" and he's turned me down. I've attempted it probably 10 times.

Thanks JB!!!!!

 

[OttoMets]

He's an excellent coach who says all kinds of things, sometimes candid, often not. He's a guy who will rip a writer for suggesting that Jerami Grant needed a rest, then admit 90 seconds later that Jerami Grant was more tired than he would've liked.

 

[VaBeachOrFan]

Another thing to JB's credit: He found a way to straighten out Dion and get him to come back for a second and productive year and play as an effective part of a team. Mike Brown, however, hasn't.-VBOF

 

[The General]

Depends on when you catch him. Like most humans.

I took a class at Cuse, "Coaching Basketball." My professor was Louis Orr. Guest lecturer, JB. JB sat and did Q&A for two hours. No question was off limits.

I've also been in the press room post game where he has ripped a young journalist's head off for a seemingly innocuous question.

All in all I think he's a smart, albeit quirky dude. I've had good experiences with him.

 

[cto]

Professionally I think is is awesome and wouldn't trade him for anybody in the history of basketball coaches (NBA included).


Personally I think he is a douche, I've tried for 3 years to get a photo with him "not even an autograph" and he's turned me down. I've attempted it probably 10 times.

Thanks JB!!!!!

You've probably asked him for a photo/autograph at a bad time... like before a game, during half time, after a loss, or when he is trying to spend time with his family (such as at a restaurant).

My experience with him is that he is very accommodating to requests when they do not interfere with his job ... or when he is trying to spend personal time with his family.

I admit I know him well and seriously love the guy... but there are times when I will not go anywhere near him. Even his family stays aways from him before a game! He is very intense.

In a way, it is very similar to the dynamics with Paul Newman here in my corner of Connecticut. Paul was also the most recognizable and prominent resident here. He was also extremely generous to community causes and very open to chatting with other residents if they ran into him at a local store. However, there was an unwritten rule here that you NEVER approached him and Joanne at a restaurant.

 

[Todd Gack]

You've probably asked him for a photo/autograph at a bad time... like before a game, during half time, after a loss, or when he is trying to spend time with his family (such as at a restaurant).

My experience with him is that he is very accommodating to requests when they do not interfere with his job ... or when he is trying to spend personal time with his family.

I admit I know him well and seriously love the guy... but there are times when I will not go anywhere near him. Even his family stays aways from him before a game! He is very intense.

In a way, it is very similar to the dynamics with Paul Newman here in my corner of Connecticut. Paul was also the most recognizable and prominent resident here. He was also extremely generous to community causes and very open to chatting with other residents if he ran into them at a local store. However, there was an unwritten rule here that you NEVER approached him and Joanne at a restaurant.

Off CTO's post, go visit him at his Thursday radio show at Delmonico's -- he's expecting it, and is accommodating. Same with Shafer at Red Robin during the football season -- he'll take a picture with your shadow if it improves Syracuse University.

 

[br801]

Professionally I think is is awesome and wouldn't trade him for anybody in the history of basketball coaches (NBA included).


Personally I think he is a douche, I've tried for 3 years to get a photo with him "not even an autograph" and he's turned me down. I've attempted it probably 10 times.

Thanks JB!!!!!

Don't be discouraged. Keep at it and maybe he'll get a restraining order against you.

 

[two3zone]

You've probably asked him for a photo/autograph at a bad time... like before a game, during half time, after a loss, or when he is trying to spend time with his family (such as at a restaurant). My experience with him is that he is very accommodating to requests when they do not interfere with his job ... or when he is trying to spend personal time with his family. I admit I know him well and seriously love the guy... but there are times when I will not go anywhere near him. Even his family stays aways from him before a game! He is very intense. In a way, it is very similar to the dynamics with Paul Newman here in my corner of Connecticut. Paul was also the most recognizable and prominent resident here. He was also extremely generous to community causes and very open to chatting with other residents if they ran into him at a local store. However, there was an unwritten rule here that you NEVER approached him and Joanne at a restaurant.

I would never do it in the times you mentioned out of respect for him. I've tried a couple times after wins, but never losses "we almost never lose "

One time when I moved back to Syracuse I was at the Melo Center checking it out and saw him walking around I asked and he kind of thought about it for a few seconds and was like "ehhhhhh, I don't think so, maybe next time". I must catch him at the wrong times . I'll try Delmonicos, I would really like a picture to throw up on the man cave with the rest of my Syracuse things.