We’ve heard the warnings. We’ve heard basketball minds tell us, “this kid is good.” But for some reason, many, including myself, were skeptical of how Buddy Boeheim’s game would translate to the NCAA. It’s incredibly early, but Boeheim proved the doubters wrong in the Orange’s 80-49 win over St. Rose on Thursday night in the Carrier Dome.
EAT Buddy Boeheim!
He's up to 17.
— Orange Fizz (@OrangeFizz) October 26, 2018
Boeheim finished the game with 19 points on 7-13 shooting, including 3-7 from three-point range. With guard Frank Howard sidelined with injury, Boeheim stepped into the starting lineup and looked poised doing it.
There was a sense when watching the game last night that Boeheim belonged. It didn’t look like he was the coaches son, it looked like he was a legitimate ACC level talent.
While many of you might already be labeling him as the next Trevor Cooney, I’m going to wait a little bit longer to do that. What you can’t argue, though, is that Syracuse hasn’t had a player like Boeheim in a number of years. Since Cooney, the Orange really haven’t had a true knock-down shooter, besides maybe former graduate transfer Andrew White.
If Boeheim keeps this up throughout the regular season, he will almost certainly fill that role. All the sudden, Syracuse’s bench looks stout and Buddy’s dad Jim has a number of options moving forward. We’re not used to seeing Syracuse play eight or nine players, but that should change this year. Coach Boeheim has said he’d considered playing ten guys with the kind of depth they have.
Don’t get too excited, but the Buddy Boeheim era in Central New York is off to a great start.
