Adrian Autry has done a wonderful job in his first season leading Syracuse basketball.
The former point guard for Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim, who would then become a long-time assistant under Boeheim before taking over as head coach of the Orange about a year ago when Boeheim retired, is both a first-year head coach on the Hill as well as a first-time head coach at the collegiate level.
The 'Cuse (20-10, 11-8 in the ACC), after winning at Louisville on Saturday night, got to 20 victories so far in the 2023-24 stanza, with a road date versus Clemson on Tuesday evening looming before the ACC Tournament in Washington, D.C., later this month.
Given that the Orange, under the legendary Boeheim, went a combined 33-32 over his final two seasons, and the 'Cuse hasn't reached 20 triumphs since 2018-19, for Autry to collect win No. 20, with more games lurking soon, is tremendous to me.
Adrian Autry has put forth a stellar head-coaching job with Syracuse basketball in his first year.
Look, Syracuse basketball is far from perfect in 2023-24. The Orange, in many of its losses, has fallen by wide margins. It has some bad setbacks, namely at Boston College, at Georgia Tech and to Florida State on the Hill.
However, the 'Cuse is playing its best basketball of the season these days. SU has won four straight and six of its past eight. It has a recent quadrant-one victory over top-10 North Carolina and also beat N.C. State on the road not too long ago.
Regardless of its low NCAA NET ranking, Syracuse basketball is hanging around the proverbial bubble for this spring's NCAA Tournament.
If Autry is able to get his group invited to the 2024 Big Dance following a two-year absence for the Orange, that would provide further proof that he's done a wonderful coaching job in 2023-24.
Let's also remember Autry's roster this term is filled with sophomores. He's utilizing a lot more man-to-man defense and playing at an up-tempo pace.
Sophomore wing Chance Westry hasn't played at all in 2023-24 due to an injury. Junior center Naheem McLeod only appeared in 14 games before suffering a season-ending injury.
Freshman center William Patterson is expected to take a redshirt this season. In early February, junior forward Benny Williams, one of the veterans on this roster, was dismissed from the program.
So Autry's 2023-24 line-up, once filled with depth, has seen that depth take a huge hit, particularly in the front-court, where sophomore Maliq Brown, who is more of a power forward, has been tasked with primarily playing center for a sizable amount of this campaign.
The Orange had a challenging non-conference docket and managed to go 9-2. On Sunday, the 'Cuse for the moment was in fourth place within the Atlantic Coast Conference standings, which is amazing.
Syracuse basketball, if it can knock off Clemson this Tuesday, would have put itself in a solid position to hear its name called on Selection Sunday, assuming it can win at least one game in the ACC Tournament.
Autry has big shoes to fill in "replacing" Jim Boeheim. Autry has tons of respect for the Hall of Famer, but he's also leading the Syracuse basketball program his way. He's had to deal with some adversity, as all head coaches at this level do. And Autry has done an excellent job guiding the Orange in 2023-24.