It’s no secret that Jim Boeheim did not have as much success at the end of his career. However, after 47 seasons at Syracuse, he coached for 1,116 wins, five Final Four appearances, and a national championship in 2003. He will go down as one of the greatest college basketball coaches of all time. After going 33-32 in his final two seasons, Boehiem retired and handed the reins to Adrian Autry. Syracuse is not content with 20 wins, but Autry had a successful opening season. The trouble lies with the second season, as they sit at 5-6 with one non-conference game remaining and little hope of reviving their season. That is well below the standard at Syracuse, so what is Adrian Autry’s coaching future? Will Syracuse be patient?
Adrian Autry’s Coaching Future: Did Syracuse Make a Mistake?
Power Conference Struggles
Syracuse has only had a losing record once in the 21st century. That usually requires a victory versus a power conference opponent before January. So far in 2024, Syracuse is 0-6 against power conference opponents. Their NET strength of schedule ranks 29th in the country so far, so it could be understandable. However, Syracuse doesn’t have acceptable losses. Georgetown and Notre Dame (without Markus Burton) were winnable games they failed to finish off.
Adrian Autry likely needs time, but these mounting losses against quality opponents are a problem. They’ve shown an inability to win games with or without start players like JJ Starling, who has missed considerable time with an injury. Adrian Autry’s coaching career will be short-lived if they don’t find ways to win those games. ACC play will provide them with many opportunities to pick up some wins, but they must show considerable improvement if Autry hopes to keep his job after two seasons.
Recruiting
After getting Kiyan Anthony to commit to Syracuse, Autry continues to achieve lofty recruiting marks. According to 247sports.com, Syracuse ranks eighth in recruiting for 2025 as of December 22. In 2024, he obtained 5-star Donnie Freeman, who has been one of the top freshmen in the ACC this season. The class finished 33rd. The issue has not been recruiting talent.
For Adrian Autry, this is both good and bad news. People still want to play under him despite their struggles. It is certainly a compliment to Adrian Autry that so many young men want to be coached by him. He clearly shows both students and parents that he can mold them into their best selves. The problem is he hasn’t established a winning culture. The team is very talented, but they struggle to win against teams like Youngstown State, Le Moyne, and Colgate and lose to every power conference team. He has to prove to Syracuse that he can win with talent. There is no point in recruiting blue-chip talent if you can’t win with them.
Defense
The 2-3 zone became a staple of Syracuse under Jim Boeheim. People were ready for a slow grind against the Orange in those physical Big East conference games before their switch to the ACC. Syracuse took a turn for the worse after joining the ACC, but their defense continued to be a staple. In his final season, Boeheim didn’t coach at a high level, but he still managed to hold opponents to only 72.9 points per game. Autry decided that he would drop the 2-3 zone and stick to a man-to-man defense like most of the country.
Their defense didn’t take a significant hit in 2023-24, allowing 75.6 points per game. However, this season, the Orange have struggled with routine errors and plays. Through 11 games, the Orange have allowed 80.2 points per game, which ranks 343th in the nation. Many of the errors have led to wide-open layups for the opponent. Man-to-man defense doesn’t have to mean poor defense (just look at Houston and Virginia). However, this team clearly lacks a defensive identity. If they are unable to find that defensive identity, there will be serious questions about Adrian Autry’s coaching future.
The Last Word
It’s early in his second season. There is time to save his job. However, Adrian Autry has to take a serious look at his coaching shortly. If he doesn’t implement some changes and find ways to win, an eternally faithful university may decide they made the wrong hire and drop Adrian Autry. I’m not here to call for somebody to be fired, but Syracuse will consider making the change if they continue to tank this season. He was never hired to be fired so soon, but without changes, Adrian Autry’s coaching future could be hanging in the balance.
