He’s a Hall of Famer when it comes to interviews, too.
One thing that no one can deny about Jim Boeheim — he sure knows how to troll people.
And during his Thursday interview with Dan Patrick, he did just that.
“I could’ve retired 10 years ago and it wouldn’t have shocked me,” Boeheim said. “I don’t know what’s etched in stone these days, I really don’t. There’s a plan in place and we’re gonna see what happens. But basically, right now, I might be done this year. You just don’t know, you just have to wait until the season’s over.”
Boeheim, who is in his 41st season as head coach of the Syracuse Orange, has never had a losing season. And this year will be no different thanks to three top-10 wins down the stretch.
Back in 2015 when Syracuse Athletics announced Jim Boeheim would only coach for three more seasons, it was up for debate. Mainly because of the cryptic wording of the statement.
“Coach Boeheim has also told me that he intends to retire as Head Coach in three years,” the statement read. We’ve been over this a thousand times — interpret it however you please.
Earlier this week, Sports Illustrated’s Pete Thamel cited people close to Boeheim saying that he may not be done after next season coaching. Boeheim immediately denied the report and said the only accurate piece of the column was the spelling of his name. But he still won’t say for certain that he’s done after next season.
“Nobody could’ve told him that,” Boeheim said. “Now, he can have that opinion. He may in his mind, but you can’t then say ‘gathered from people near him’ because nobody near me has ever heard me talk about that. I think it’s best for our program to coach, and just coach day-to-day. I’ve been doing that for the last 10 years.”
“There’s a plan in place, and we’re gonna see what happens,” Boeheim said. Which is something we continue to hear.
Whether it’s conversations with friends, other writers on TNIAAM or media members in the Syracuse market — everyone has a different opinion on what will happen.
Part of me believes Boeheim will be done after next season solely out of respect for Mike Hopkins, who has patiently been waiting for his time to shine as head coach.
But another part of me believes Boeheim just has the itch to coach, and if he wants to stay longer, he can. You can’t turn away a Hall of Famer who literally built the program from virtually nothing. Through the good and bad, he’s been here and he’s stayed loyal. If he wants to coach until he’s 85, he can.
His comments aren’t very surprising to those who have followed this development. He’s hinted at returning, but just like that he throws a curveball at us. Will he retire after this season? No. There’s a better chance he coaches after next season than him hanging it up after this year.
But one thing is certain — Jim Boeheim sure knows how to troll us. He knows exactly what he says, and everything he says has a reason behind it.
