Syracuse Basketball: Hey Andy Katz, Buddy Boeheim is a West contender

Andy Katz didn’t include Syracuse basketball junior Buddy Boeheim among his top-20 candidates to capture the Jerry West Award in the 2020-21 campaign.

Syracuse basketball shooting guard Buddy Boeheim put forth a strong sophomore stanza, and I’m confident that he’s going to shine even more as a junior in the 2020-21 term.

Still, college basketball insider Andy Katz has published his top-20 candidates to win the Jerry West Award in the upcoming season as the country’s best shooting guard, and Boeheim didn’t make the cut.

Sorry, Andy, but Boeheim is among the 20 most-outstanding shooting guards within the sport. Katz also recently omitted Orange sophomore Joe Girard III when he listed his top-15 candidates to claim the Bob Cousy Award in 2020-21 as the premier point guard across the nation.

Reverting back to Boeheim, in 2019-20, when the ‘Cuse recorded an 18-14 mark, he averaged 15.3 points per contest, good for a top-12 finish in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Boeheim paced the conference in 3-point field-goal percentage and 3-point shots made per affair. He was also a top-five finisher in the voting for the ACC’s Most Improved Player honor.

Should Boeheim continue to improve his defense, increase his shooting percentages from the field and downtown to about 45 percent and 40 percent, respectively, register around 18 points a game in 2020-21, and up his assist and rebound totals a tad, I simply can’t see how he doesn’t end up as an All-ACC guy and top-20 shooting guard nationwide.

In case you’re wondering, Katz’s top-20 candidates for the Jerry West Award, in order, are Kentucky freshman B.J. Boston, Northern Iowa junior A.J. Green, Michigan State senior Joshua Langford, Houston sophomore Caleb Mills, Gonzaga junior Joel Ayayi, South Carolina junior A.J. Lawson, Baylor senior MaCio Teague, Villanova sophomore Justin Moore, Oregon junior Will Richardson, Providence junior David Duke, Saint Louis senior Jordan Goodwin, West Virginia sophomore Miles McBride, Boise State senior Derrick Alston, Creighton senior Mitchell Ballock, Richmond senior Blake Francis, Davidson senior Kellan Grady, UTSA senior Jhivvan Jackson, Georgia Tech senior Jose Alvarado, Oklahoma senior Austin Reaves and Seton Hall senior Bryce Aiken.

Boeheim may not prove on Katz’s radar for the Jerry West Award, but I have a feeling that the Syracuse basketball shooting guard’s performance on the court in 2020-21 will ultimately put him on the watch list for this national recognition.