Syracuse Basketball: Buddy Boeheim nets All-American love from Dickie V

The 2021-22 campaign for Syracuse basketball and its peers around the country begins in a matter of weeks, and the ongoing buzz surrounding Orange senior shooting guard Buddy Boeheim is palpable.

Coming off an impressive junior stint in which he caught fire in the post-season and helped lead the ‘Cuse on a nice run to the Sweet of the Big Dance, the 6-foot-6 Boeheim is garnering all kinds of pre-season accolades from a variety of analysts and national writers.

As we’ve documented in recent columns, Boeheim has landed on several pre-season All-American squads. He is deemed a top-10 returning player, as well as a top-25 overall player.

And now, famed college basketball analyst Dick Vitale has showered Boeheim with a massive pre-season honor, which we’re going to explore here.

Syracuse basketball guard Buddy Boeheim has huge expectations as a senior.

Vitale recently published his five pre-season All-American teams, and Boeheim has earned a spot on the first squad, which is impressive. Joining Boeheim on the first team are Gonzaga power forward Drew Timme, Illinois center Kofi Cockburn, Villanova point guard Collin Gillespie and Indiana forward Trayce Jackson-Davis.

It’s important to note that Vitale hasn’t put any incoming freshmen on his pre-season All-American groups. Two other players from the Atlantic Coast Conference made the cut as well, and they are North Carolina power forward/center Armando Bacot (fourth team) and Duke center Mark Williams (fifth team).

I’ve said several times of late that I think Boeheim is primed for a monster senior year. I just hope all of these pre-season accolades don’t add any unnecessary pressure.

He averaged nearly 18 points per game as a junior and more than 15 points a contest during his sophomore stanza. It’s likely that Boeheim will pace the Orange in scoring this coming season, however, with so many shooters around him, I could see Boeheim actually average fewer points per encounter, while seeing his shooting percentages climb.

Because the ‘Cuse has an arsenal of sharp-shooters from beyond the arc in 2021-22, opposing defenders simply can’t swarm Boeheim and ignore everyone else.

That should free up Boeheim to get some open looks from deep. Plus, his mid-range game is strong, and he continues to enhance his scoring prowess around the basket.