The NCAA doesn’t recognize 101 of Jim Boeheim’s 1000 career wins, but the rest of the world does. After Syracuse’s win over No. 9 Virginia gave a Boeheim opponent its 1000th loss, congratulations came pouring in for the Hall of Fame coach. Some of the biggest names in college basketball gave Boeheim a shoutout.
Jim Boeheim won’t celebrate it, and SU isn’t allowed, so we have to do it for them: Congrats Coach! #Boeheim1K #orangenation pic.twitter.com/5d4LeCQ1UZ
— syracuse.com (@syracusedotcom) February 4, 2017
Jim Boeheim joins Pat Summitt, Coach K, and Tara VanDerveer as the only four D1 coaches in history to hand their opponents 1,000 losses!! pic.twitter.com/vhqgky6zNf
— Jay Bilas (@JayBilas) February 4, 2017
Today's @dailyorange: A wraparound with a photo spread inside honoring Jim Boeheim's unofficial 1,00th win. Pick one up (@APSE_sportmedia) pic.twitter.com/CAU6LaktYK
— Tomer Langer (@tomer_langer) February 6, 2017
Congrats to @Cuse_MBB Jim Boeheim on win number 1000. Another milestone for the HOFer. Down but never out!
— Seth Greenberg (@SethOnHoops) February 4, 2017
1000 wins!!! Congratulations to Coach Boeheim on this amazing milestone! #RealBoeheimWins pic.twitter.com/9ZPzeTukTp
— Onondaga County (@OnondagaCounty) February 4, 2017
Anyway u cut it Jim Boeheim has walked out of arenas over the yrs with 1000 W's (via https://t.co/Q473iEw0rJ ) https://t.co/1yPRCKqYdC
— Dick Vitale (@DickieV) February 5, 2017
Mike Krzyzewski called Jim Boeheim on Saturday "to congratulate him on 1,000." He didn't say 1,000 what, but, you know. #novacation
— Michael DeCourcy (@tsnmike) February 6, 2017
The consensus among everyone is that Jim Boeheim has 1000 wins, and that the NCAA is wrong in thinking otherwise.
Congrats to Jim Boeheim. He doesn't have 1000 wins but his opponents have 1000 losses. Don't ask me explain that one.
— Fran Fraschilla (@franfraschilla) February 4, 2017
Most had to keep their takes to 140 characters, but ESPN’s Andy Katz got air time after the win to voice his opinion:
“We heard Jim Boeheim,” said Katz. “Clearly, it matters to him and it should… This should be No. 1000. I’ve said this before, I said it in the halftime and I’ll say it again, the NCAA has so many ways it can penalize. We were there. We saw it. We can’t erase our minds. I’ll say it again: these wins happened. He deserves this to be No. 1000. That’s what it should be.”
Later, Katz called out the NCAA again.
“They took away 101 wins. That’s something the NCAA does in vacating wins and Final Fours and stuff like that. I think it’s wrong. There’s other ways to penalize.”
The attitude on the sanctions on Syracuse basketball has changed. When the violations first came out, most Cuse fans were more excited the Orange wouldn’t have to sit out another NCAA Tournament than anything else. Up until Boeheim started inching closer to 1000 wins, the 101 which had been taken away seemed like a steal for what ended up being a Final Four run in the 2015-16 season.¬† But now that Boeheim’s 1000th win is here, the mood has changed. Everyone agrees Jim Boeheim should have 1000 wins, and most would argue he does, but there’s still the part of every Boeheim-lover who wants him to be able to have it. The banner in the Carrier Dome. The framed jersey with “1000” on the back. The video presentation on the big screen. The world celebrated on social media and in the following hours on SportsCenter, but Syracuse wasn’t able to celebrate at center court with the man who has been at the school’s side for over 50 years.
Most people think Syracuse got off pretty easy with the NCAA. The Orange lost some scholarships it usually doesn’t use anyway, the team’s self-imposed sanctions prevented any further postseason ban, and SU made it to the Final Four the next season. The NCAA did win this round, though. Jim Boeheim loves Syracuse, and he wanted to share this accomplishment with his school more than anything else.
Boeheim also cares about making the NCAA Tournament, and win 1000 made that much more likely. After he defended Boeheim’s legacy, Katz also chimed in on Syracuse’s turnaround.
“They flipped the switch. The talent is there. They’ve now all bought in. The pieces do fit a little bit better with wins over Florida State, the comeback win over NC State on the road and this one over Virginia. They are going to be in the NCAA Tournament. They’ve got enough quality wins at this juncture barring a complete¬† faceplant over the next month.”
Posted: Nathan Dickinson
