Syracuse Basketball: Jimmy Boeheim in Orange is fun; he’s really good

Ahead of the 2021-22 campaign, which begins sooner rather than later, Syracuse basketball senior shooting guard Buddy Boeheim is understandably getting all kinds of media attention, but his older brother, Jimmy Boeheim, is going to have a terrific season, in my humble opinion.

Jimmy Boeheim, a 6-foot-8 forward, graduated from Cornell and elected to transfer to the Orange to play with his brother and for his dad, head coach Jim Boeheim.

Amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, the Ivy League had canceled its 2020-21 stanza, so Jimmy Boeheim didn’t get to compete a term ago.

Now as a graduate student on the Hill, he’s helped to form a Boeheim family triumvirate in 2021-22, and it should be a wildly entertaining year.

Syracuse basketball forward Jimmy Boeheim will be a key piece this season.

When Orange players held a scrimmage on Friday, the elder Boeheim brother did quite well. According to a cuse.com press release, Jimmy Boeheim netted 20 points.

He connected on multiple 3-point attempts. He’s versatile in the ways that he can score, including from deep, in the mid-range and closer to the basket. Most importantly, at least to me, Boeheim is a confident player, not overshadowed by Buddy, who has garnered a flood of pre-season All-American accolades.

Let’s not forget that in his last stanza with Cornell, Jimmy Boeheim averaged nearly 17 points a game. He grabbed more than 5 boards per contest. His shooting percentage from long range wasn’t great, but he can certainly hit a 3-pointer here and there.

I’ve seen some comments from Syracuse basketball fans that speak to Jimmy Boeheim doing his production in the Ivy League, not the rugged Atlantic Coast Conference. That’s true, but the Ivy League is still Division I men’s basketball, and collecting almost 17 points per encounter is excellent.

Boeheim is one of three primary forwards on the roster, and all three of them should get substantial minutes. Whether Boeheim starts or not remains to be seen, but he will be a critical cog for the Orange, in terms of his scoring, definitely his rebounding, and helping to anchor the team’s 2-3 zone.

Buddy Boeheim may be an All-American in 2021-22, which would prove wonderful. But I believe that his older brother, Jimmy, who gets just this one campaign in Central New York, is primed for a stellar term.