I was listening to Orange Nation and Paulie Scibilia told Steve Infanti that he could not recall Jim Boeheim ever removing a player from his starting line up after putting him there, (Jalen Carey says hello). I decided to record the ‘GS’, games started for all of Boeheim’s teams to see how close to being true that actually is. (By the way their producer, Jordan, told me that Pat told them of the informative posts I’d done on Syracusefan.com with lots of numbers. I told him that I’m not the only one on here they should be looking at, so you may hear some references to some of the posts here in future shows.)
Source:
Syracuse Orangemen Basketball 1976-1977
1976-77: Roosevelt Bouie 30 games, Marty Byrnes and Dale Shackelford 29, Jimmy Williams 28, Larry Kelley 25, Ross Kindel 7, Louis Orr 2. Total: 7 players
1977-78: Roosevelt Bouie, Louis Orr, Marty Byrnes, Dale Shackelford and Ross Kindel all 28. Total: 5 players
1978-79: Roosevelt Bouie, Dale Shackelford, Marty Headd 30 each Louie Orr 27 Hal Cohen 21 Eddie Moss 9 Rich Harmon 1 Total: 7 players
1979-80: Roosevelt Bouie, Louie Orr, Marty Headd, Eddie Moss 30 each Erich Santifer 16, Ron Payton 11, Danny Schayes 3 Total: 7 players
1980-81: Danny Schayes, Eddie Moss 34 each, Leo Rautins 26, Erich Santifer 25, Marty Headd 24, Tony Bruin 18, Ron Payton 8, Gene Waldron 1 Total: 8 players
1981-82: Andre Hawkins and Erich Santifer 29, Gene Waldron 28, Tony Bruin 24, Leo Rautins 18, Ron Payton 16, Sonny Spera 1 Total: 7 players
1982-83: Andre Hawkins, Leo Rautins and Erich Santifer 31, Gene Waldron 30, Tony Bruin 29, Rafael Addison, Sea Kerins, Sonny Spera 1 each Total: 8 players
1983-84: Andre Hawkins, Sean Kerins, Rafael Addison, Gene Waldron, Pearl Washington 32 each. Total: 5 players.
1984-85: Rony Seikaly, Andre Hawkins, Rafael Addison, Pearl Washington 31 each, Michael Brown 30, Howard Triche 1. Total: 6 players.
1985-86: Rony Seikaly, Wendell Alexis, Howie Triche, Raf Addison, Pearl Washington 32 each: Total: 5 players.
1986-87: Derrick Coleman, Howie Triche, Greg Monroe, Sherman Douglas 38 each, Rony Seikaly 35, Derek Brower 3 Total: 6 players.
1987-88: Rony Seikaly and Stephen Thompson 35, Derrick Coleman and Sherman Douglas 34, Matt Roe 31, Earl Duncan 4, Herman Harried 1. Total: 7 players.
1988-89: Billy Owens, Stevie Thompson, Matt Roe and Sherman Douglas 38, Derrick Coleman 37, Rick Manning 1. Total: 6 players.
1989-90: Billy Owens and Stevie Thompson 33 each, Derrick Coleman 32, LeRon Ellis 29, Michael Edwards 18, Dave Johnson 15, Tony Scott 3, Richard Manning 2. Total: 8 players.
1990-91: LeRon Ellis, Billy Owens, Dave Johnson 32 each, Adrian Autry and Michael Edwards 30 each, Mike Hopkins 4. Total: 6 players.
1991-92: Dave Johnson 32, Mike Hopkins 31, Lawrence Moten 30, Adrian Autry 28, Dave Siock 21, Conrad McRae 5, Anthony Harris and Scott McCorkle 1 each. Total: 8 players.
1992-93: John Wallace 29, Adrian Autry and Lawrence Moten 28, Mike Hopkins 27, Conrad McRae 19, Dave Siock 10, Luke Jackson 3, Michael Edwards 1. Total: 8 players.
1993-94: John Wallace, Lawrence Moten, Luke Jackson, Adrian Autry 30 each, Otis Hill 29, Scott McCorkle 1. Total: 6 players.
1994-95: John Wallace, Lawrence Moten, Luke Jackson, Michael Lloyd 30 each, JB Reafsnyder 23, Otis Hill 7. Total: 6 players.
1995-96: John Wallace, Todd Burgan and Lazarus Sims 38 each, Otis Hill 37, Jason Cipolla 24, Marius Janulis 14, JB Reafsnyder 1. Total: 7 players.
1996-97: Otis Hill, Jason Cipolla and Jason Hart 32 each, Todd Burgan 25, Marius Janulis 21, Etan Thomas 12, Elvir Ovcina 5. Total: 7 players.
1997-98: Etan Thomas, Ryan Blackwell, Todd Burgan, Marius Janulis and Jason Hart 35 each. Total: 5 players.
1998-99: Etan Thomas, Ryan Blackwell and Allen Griffin 33, Jason Hart 32, Damone Brown 26, Eric Williams 7, Tony Bland 1. Total: 7 players.
1999-00: Ryan Blackwell, Jason Hart and Tony Bland 32, Damone Brown 31, Etan Thomas 29, Preston Shumpert 4. Total: 6 players.
2000-01: Damone Brown, Preston Shumpert, DeShaun Williams and Allen Griffin 34, Jeremy McNeil 21, Bill Celuck 13. Total: 6 players.
2001-02: Craig Forth, Preston Shumpert, Kueth Duany 36 each, DeShaun Williams 33, Hakim Warrick 19, James Thues 18, Ethan Cole 2. Total: 7 players.
2002-03: Craig Forth, Carmelo Anthony, Hakim Warrick, Kueth Duany and Gerry McNamara 35 each. Total: 5 players.
2003-04: Craig Forth, Hakim Warrick, Josh Pace, Gerry McNamara 31 each, Billy Edelin 16, Demetris Nichols 15. Total: 6 players
2004-05: Craig Forth, Hakim Warrick, Josh Pace, Gerry McNamara 34 each, Louie McCrosky 16, Demetris Nichols 8, Terrence Roberts 7, Bill Edelin 3. Total: 8 players.
2005-06: Darryl Watkins, Terrence Roberts, Demetris Nichols, Gerry McNamara 35, Eric Devendorf 30, Louie McCrosky 5. Total: 6 players
2006-07: Demetris Nichols 35, Terence Roberts 33, Darryl Watkins 32, Josh Wright 27, Eric Devendorf 22, Andy Rautins 20, Matt Gorman 5, Paul Harris 1. Total: 9 players.
2007-08: Arinze Onuaku, Donte Green, Paul Harris, Jonny Flynn 35, Kristoff Ongenaet 15, Scoop Jardine, Eric Devendorf 10. Total: 7 players.
2008-09: Jonny Flynn 38, Arinze Onuaku 37, Paul Harris 36, Eric Devendorf 28, Rick Jackson 27, Kristoff Ongeneat 12, Andy Rautins 10, Kris Joseph 2. Total: 8 players
2009-10: Rick Jackson, Wesley Johnson, Andy Rautins and Brandon Triche 35, Arinze Onukau 32, Kris Joseph 4. Total: 6 players.
2010-11: Rick Jackson, Brandon Triche, Scoop Jardine 35, Kris Joseph 34, Fab Melo 24, Baye Keita 10. James Southerland 2. Total: 7 players.
2011-12: Scoop Jardine, Brandon Triche, Kris Joseph 37 each, Rakeem Christmas 35, Fab Melo 30, CJ Fair 9, Total: 6 players.
2012-13: Rakeem Christmas CJ Fair, Brandon Triche, Michael Carter- Williams 40 each, DaJuan Coleman 20, James Southerland 11, Jerami Grant 9. Total: 7 players.
2013-14: Rakeem Christmas, CJ Fair, Trevor Cooney, Tyler Ennis 34 each, Jerami Grant 20, DaJuan Coleman 12, Baye Keita and Tyler Roberson 1 each. Total: 8 players.
2014-15: Rakeem Christmas and Trevor Cooney 31, Kaleb Joseph 30, Michael Gbinije 24, Tyler Roberson 19, Chris McCullough 16, BJ Johnson 4. Total: 7 players.
2015-16: DaJuan Coleman, Tyler Roberson, Malachi Richardson, Michael Gbinije, Trevor Cooney 37 each. Total: 5 players.
2016-17: Tyler Lydon, Andrew White 34, Tyus Battle 23, John Gillon 23, Taurean Thompson 21, Frank Howard 14, DaJuan Coleman 13, Tyler Roberson 6. Total: 8 players.
2017-18: Paschal Chukwu, Oshae Brissett, Tyus Battle, Frank Howard 37 each, Matthew Moyer 20, Marek Dolezaj 17. Total: 6 players.
2018-19: Oshae Brissett, and Elijah Hughes 34, Tyus Battle 32, Frank Howard 29, Paschal Chukwu 28, Marek Dolezaj 6, Buddy Boeheim 5, Jalen Carey 2. Total: 8 players.
2019-20: Bourama Sidibe, Marek Dolezaj, Elijah Hughes and Buddy Boeheim 32, Joe Girard 30, Jalen Carey 2. Total: 6 players.
In the previous 44 seasons, Jim Boeheim has started 348 players, (treating each actual player as a separate player in each season). That’s an average of 7.9 players per season. We’ve had send starters so far this season: Marek Dolezaj, Quincy Guerrier and Joe Girard for 20 games, Alan Griffin for 19, Buddy Boeheim for 17, Kadary Richmond for 3 and Bourama Sidibe for 1, 9the opener, where he lasted for 4 minutes). Obivously tha vast majority of times that someone other than the five main starters started a game were because the normal starter was unbailable for reasons of health or a suspension of some sort. So I scanned through these numbers and my memory to find scenarios where a normal starter was actually superseded by another player during the course of the season, specifically because the stater was beaten out:
1978-80: Hal Cohen was part of the Louie/Bouie/Cliff Warwell class that was Jim’s first recruiting class. In fact, he was the highest scorer of that bunch in high school and I believe the highest scoring recruit we had until Joe Girard, (I haven’t found Hal’s HS senior scoring average but I think it was about 35.0 per game). He’d set a record with 598 straight free throws made in a practice session. Here’s a comment from Orangehoops: “By his junior season, Cohen was the starting point guard at Syracuse, though a three man rotation with Eddie Moss and Marty Headd was clearly established. Moss was the best ball handler and defender, Headd the best shooter, and Cohen the best combination of skills. During his senior year, Moss ended up being the primary starter, with Cohen filling in at the third guard position.”
Judging by the fact that Moss started 9 games and Cohen 21 in the 30 game 1978-79 season, it would seem the switch was made late in that season, making this a close parallel to what we have now. Joe Girard is a better player than Hal Cohen was but Kadary Richmond is a better player than Eddie Moss was, as well.
1980-82: Ron Payton started 8 of 34 games and Leo Rautins started 26. Tony Bruin started 18 games and Eric Santifer 25. Marty Headd 24 while Danny Schayes and Eddie Moss started all 34. Payton, kind of a forgotten player wasn’t big at 6-6 205 but was bigger than Bruin, (6-5 200) and Santifer, (6-4 180). The following season, Rautins started only 18 of 29 games. Payton 16, Bruin 24 and Santifer all 29, as did Andre Hawkins, the center. Point guard gene Waldron started 28 of 29. My memory of all this is that it was Payton who was the primary back-up for Leo and that Bruin and Santifer were interchangeable at the 2-3 positions. They would not have replaced Rautins who was the power forward. I think Eric displaced head, who was hurt late in the 80-81 season and was mostly the 2 after that. Bruin was mostly the 3. It’s possible that Payton may have stared at the beginning of the 80-81 season until JB was satisfied that Leo was ready to take over the team, (the offense was basically run through him) and that Ron’s other starts came when Leo was hurt.
1989-90: Michael Edwards started 18 games and Dave Johnson started 15. It would be easy to assume that Johnson, who became a star the next two seasons, displaced Edwards, whose career faded as it went along. But my memory is that we started the season with the experiment of Stevie Thompson playing the point, which didn’t work and Edwards eventually had to be inserted into the line-up as the only true point guard on the team. Johnson had not yet learned his jump shop and was, as yet, a limited player despite his obvious athletic ability. I think he started with Thompson and was displaced by Edwards not because Edwards was better than Johnson but because he was a better point guard than Thompson.
1991-93: Dave Siock inherited the center position after LeRon Ellis graduated and Richard Manning left. But he only started 21 of 32 games and Conrad McRae started 11. The next year the numbers were reverse: Conrad started 19 of 29 games, Siock 10. I don’t remember what happened here, just that McRae was much better than Siock. I suspect that Dave started he first 21 games on the 90-91 season and was then displaced by McRae and that Conrad was hurt, (I don’t recall any suspension) the next year and Dave started in his place.
1994-96: JB Reafsnyder started 23 of 30 games in 94-95, Otis Hill 7. The next year it was Hill 37 of 38 games, JB for 1. Obviously JB went with JB to start the 94-95 season and finally decide Otis would be better.
1995-97: Jason Cipolla started 24 of 38 games in 95-96 and Marius Janulis 14. The next year Cipolla started all 32 games, Janulis 21. Hill and Jason Hart started all 32 games. Todd Burgan started 25 games and that’s all he played in. Etan Thomas started 12 games even though Hill never missed one and Elvir Ovcina. I recall that Cipolla was supposed to be a big-time JUCO recruit and Marius was something of an unknown. Despite his famous shot from John Wallace’s inbound pass against Georgia, Cipolla was a disappointment that first season, shooting 38%, including 31% from three while Marius shot 45% and 42% from three. I suspect JB decided to go with him in the starting line-up form the 25th game. The next year Jason lived up to this press clippings and kept the starting position. I recall Burgan was suspended for the games he missed and they are almost the same number of games Ovcina played. With Hill at center we were kind of small up front. We were also not having a very good season, (we wound up 19-13). I think JB started Etan over Marius just to get more size inside. The next year they both started all 35 games as Hill and Cipolla were gone.
1998-99: Eric Williams started 7 of 33 games and Damone Brown 26. Brown was the starter the next year. Williams was a guy who played great against bad teams and disappeared against good ones. He was also an excellent rebounder who like to jack up threes. He was always in Boeheim’s doghouse. Brown clearly supplanted him.
2000-01: Bill Celuck started 13 of 34 games in 2000-01, Jeremy McNeil 21. The next year neither one of them started a game. Jeremy was no world beater but he was better than Billy and I assume he started the last 21 games.
2001-02: I’m not sure what happened here. I’m amazed that Ethan Cole, probably the worst scholarship player of the Boeheim era, ever started a game, much less two of them. But the big head-scratcher is: Hakim Warrick 19, James Thues 18. They obviously didn’t play the same position. Forth, Shumpert and Duany started all 36 games. DeShaun Williams started 33 and that’s all he played in. he must have duked it out with the Otto the Orange lady before the 34th game. He had the second most assists on the team to Thues, (135 to 178). Their minutes were comparable, (1,155 to 1,127). Obviously, they played together a lot. Jim must have just concluded he needed Hak in the starting line-up and decided to displace Theus.
2003-05: In 03-04 Billy Edelin played 16 of 31 games, Demetris Nichols 15. Orangehoops: “Billy Edelin, finally able to start a season, was cruising along as the third option for the offense. Unfortunately, in January, he was once again beset by personal problems, failing to show up for a game, and ultimately sitting out the rest of the season.” Demetris didn’t so much beat Billy out and Billy beat himself out. The next year Demetris started 8 games, Edelin 3, Louie McCroskey 16 and Terrence Roberts 7. Demetris talked about getting beaten out by Louie on the radio this past week and how he took it as a challenge and won his job back. That was the next year when he started all 35 games. We played 34 games in 04-05 and 8 + 3+ 16 +7 = 34 while Forth, Warrick, Pace and McNamara started all 34, so Nichols, Edelin, McCroskey and Roberts shared the same spot in the starting line-up if not the same position and none of them really won it.
2005-06: McCroskey started 5 of 35 games. Eric Devendorf started the other 30.
2006-08: Nichols started all 35 games in 06-07 but the rest of the starting line-up was a kaleidoscope:
Terence Roberts 33, Darryl Watkins 32, Josh Wright 27, Eric Devendorf 22, Andy Rautins 20, Matt Gorman 5, Paul Harris 1. Watkins only played in 33 games so he must have been out for two and not ready to start for a third. Roberts or Gorman may have bene playing center for those games. Devendorf and Rautins were better than Wright but he was a point guard and they weren’t. Devo averaged 14.8ppg so why he would not have started 13 games I don’t know: he played in all 35 and was second on the team in minutes with 1,081. I really don’t know what happened here but Devo was certai9nly the starter to open the 07-08 season. He tore his ACL in the 10th game and was done for the year. The other starters started all 35 so we know that Kristoff Ongenaet (15) and Scoop Jardine (10) replaced Devo. I recall Scoop had a hairline fracture of something that he didn’t report as we were down to 7 scholarship players at one point. He probably replaced Devo in the starting line-up and then gave way to Ongenaet, a different player who gave them different skills.
2008-09: Another mess: 2008-09: Jonny Flynn 38, Arinze Onuaku 37, Paul Harris 36, Eric Devendorf 28, Rick Jackson 27, Kristoff Ongeneat 12, Andy Rautins 10, Kris Joseph 2. I’ve forgotten why Devo only started 28 games. I know he and Harris left after the season, (Devo would have had another year due to a medical redshirt the prior season), and I recall the scuttlebutt was that they were “asked to leave”. I don’t know what happened. Rautins must have started the last ten games? Joseph probably started the last two instead of Harris? Jackson played in all 38 games: he just didn’t start 11 of them, which I assume were started by Kristoff. They were portably the first 11 games.
2010-11: Fab Melo 24, Baye Keita 10. Fab kept starting but JB would pull him after his first mistake. Keita actually played more minutes: 511-327 and I think Jim just decided he might as well start in those last 10 games.
2012-14: DaJuan Coleman 20, James Southerland 11, Jerami Grant 9. DaJuan’s knees gave way and with both Christmas and Keita available, Jim went with the two forwards. Southerland missed 6 games that year. I don’t recall a suspension so I assume he had an injury and that that opened a spot up for Jerami, who was a freshman. The next year Coleman started 12 games, grant 20 so the same thing happened but Southerland was gone.
2014-15: Chris McCullough’s must anticipated career last 16 games and Tyler Roberson took over that spot.
2016-17: Tyler Lydon, Andrew White 34, Tyus Battle 25, John Gillon 23, Taurean Thompson 21, Frank Howard 14, DaJuan Coleman 13, Tyler Roberson 6. Gillon had two of the best games I’ve seen an SU player had but was awful at other times. JB must have gone to Frank Howard, Gillon’s successor the following season, out of frustration but it would not have been consecutive games. Actually I think Howard may have been the starter at the beginning of the season. Thompson must have replaced the unfortunate Coleman, whose injury-plagued career finally came to an end. I’m guessing the 9 games battle didn’t start were probably started by Roberson and Howard.
2017-18: Marek Dolezaj (17) succeeded Matthew Moyer (20).
2018-20: Jalen Carey started 2 games both years. He gave way to the return of Frank Howard after injury in 2018 and to Joe Girard in 2019. Howard was in and out all season and suspended for the NCAA tournament. That got Buddy Boeheim 5 starts. Paschal Chukwu missed one game in 18-19 and didn’t start in 5 others. I think that’s when the Marek Dolezaj at center situation began, (he had 6 starts).
The cases where an original starter was beaten out during the season not involving injury, suspension, leaving the team, etc.:
1978-79: Eddie Moss over Hal Cohen, 22nd game
1980-81: Leo Rautins over Ron Payton, 9th game
1989-90: Michael Edwards over Dave Johnson except it’s really Edwards over Stevie Thompson as a point guard, 19th game
1991-92: Conrad McRae over Dave Siock, 22nd game
1994-95: Otis Hill over JB Reafsnyder, 24th game
1995-96: Marius Janulis over Jason Cipolla, 25th game
1998-99: Damone Brown over Eric Williams, 8th game
2000-01: Jeremy McNeil over Billy Celuck, 14th game
2001-02: I think Hakim Warrick over James Theus, 19th game?
2004-05: Louie McCroskey over Demetris Nichols, 9th game.
2005-06: Eric Devendorf over Louie McCroskey 6th game
2010-11: Baye Keita over Fab Melo, 25th game
2017-18: Marek Dolezaj over Matthew Moyer, 21st game
2019-20: Joe Girard over Jalen Carey, 3rd game.
Feel free to correct anything I haven’t remembered or deduced correctly. Overall, I’d say that, yes, Jim Boeheim is capable of deciding to change his starting line-up if a reserve is out-performing the starter but like most coaches, he’s reluctant to do so unless the guy is really creating a problem and he also takes his time to make the switch.
