Syracuse Basketball: Jim Boeheim on 3-guard line-up, his son at center

During the lead-up to the 2021-22 regular season for Syracuse basketball, I’ve seen a sizable amount of comments from my fellow Orange fans regarding the possibility of graduate student forward Jimmy Boeheim getting some run at center in the upcoming campaign.

In fact, in the team’s recent exhibition triumph over Le Moyne inside the Carrier Dome, Boeheim did anchor the center spot for a period of time, with senior Cole Swider and freshman Benny Williams at the forward positions, while senior Buddy Boeheim and junior Joe Girard III were the guards.

Now, Jimmy Boeheim is a veteran player with loads of experience at the Division I level. He’s also physical and strong, standing 6-foot-8 and weighing 225 pounds, according to his bio on cuse.com.

Syracuse basketball forward Jimmy Boeheim isn’t likely to play much at center, his dad says.

That being said, Boeheim is not a traditional center, and he isn’t quite as tall as the squad’s other true centers, namely junior Jesse Edwards and sophomore Frank Anselem.

Perhaps an argument could get made that with Boeheim at center, the ‘Cuse is a bit more experienced and could be more dangerous on offense.

But an Orange team that already has rebounding concerns might prove more vulnerable on the defensive glass without a traditional center anchoring the 2-3 zone.

Head coach Jim Boeheim, in his post-game press conference after the ‘Cuse beat Le Moyne by 40 points, said he doesn’t think the Orange will utilize a line-up with Jimmy Boeheim at center all that much.

They spend time in this kind of rotation during practices, which makes sense in case Syracuse basketball needs to rely on it in games, however, Jim Boeheim said that he’s hopeful the Orange doesn’t have to play this line-up with regularity.

I get what Coach B is saying. For one, his son Jimmy is more of a natural forward, a power forward if you will, but if he’s playing center a lot, could that mean that other true centers like Edwards or Anselem are running into foul trouble or have gotten injured? I, of course, want neither of those scenarios to occur.

Jim Boeheim, on another topic, did say that the ‘Cuse could sometimes employ a three-guard line-up, as it did versus Le Moyne. In that sort of scenario, Girard would be at the top of the zone, joined by Buddy Boeheim or junior guard Symir Torrence, with the other residing at one of the forward spots.

Naturally, though, that means one of the taller forwards would likely be on the bench, so this rotation probably wouldn’t work as well if an opponent has an extremely lengthy line-up on the floor.

Conversely, if Boeheim and Girard are both on the court, that gives the Orange two excellent long-range shooters, and then Torrence’s presence provides the ‘Cuse with athleticism, strong defensive instincts and a player who facilitates well and has a focus on driving to the rim. This also allows Girard to play at the two-guard spot, rather than at point guard.

Unless it’s out of necessity, I’d prefer to see Jimmy Boeheim at forward, with either Edwards or Anselem at center. I do like the idea of a three-guard line-up on occasion, provided it doesn’t lead to Syracuse basketball getting smoked on the boards.