Benny Williams came to Syracuse University as a top-50 recruit in the country. Of all the players to pick SU over the last decade, he had some of the most potential. To go from that to off the team by his junior year is disappointing, to say the least. It’s an unfortunate outcome for everyone, Williams included.
Things were somewhat rocky from the start. Jim Boeheim was quick to sub out Williams as a freshman. He didn’t have a lot of time to make mistakes and learn through them. At that point, if you had predicted Benny Williams would transfer, that wouldn’t have been too crazy. But being dismissed from the team? That didn’t seem to be in the cards at the time.
In his sophomore year, the 2022-23 season, a sense of uncertainty remained around Williams’ status with the team. He had a notable absence in the middle of the season, one that brought upon frustration from Coach Boeheim when asked about it. Despite this, Benny Williams put together a productive year at the forward position. He averaged 7.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, solid numbers as the fourth option on offense.
This year, his junior year, is when warning signs really started going off. Williams served a team-issued suspension for the first two games of the season for a “violation of team rules.” Syracuse never specified what that was. Although he began to get more involved as the year went on, he still seemed disconnected from the rest of the team.
Now, without much explanation, Benny Williams has been dismissed from the team. It’s unfortunate for the Orange, who could use some depth in the front court. But more importantly, it’s unfortunate for Williams, who now has an uncertain future as a basketball player.
