Men's Basketball

Jim Boeheim discusses uncertainty of offseason player movement for Syracuse

Chase Gaewski | Staff Photographer

On Wednesday, Jim Boeheim discussed the potential for player movement in the offseason, but said even he doesn't know who will return and who won't.

Jim Boeheim thinks his team is going to go through “tremendous” changes in the offseason.

On Wednesday, he addressed a group of reporters in the Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball Center and discussed the prospects of player movement after Syracuse concludes its season against North Carolina State on Saturday.

Now that Chris McCullough has announced his decision to return to school for his sophomore season, as Syracuse.com reported on Wednesday afternoon, Rakeem Christmas appears to be the only scholarship player that will depart.

“We’re going to have to see how it all comes together in September,” Boeheim said. “We don’t know really much right now.”

If SU was to add another recruit, it would likely be 6-foot-9 Rochester, New York native Thomas Bryant. Bryant is rated as the No. 22 prospect in the Class of 2015 by ESPN and currently attends Huntington Prep in West Virginia.



He’s the only recruit in the class that SU is still pursuing, Syracuse.com has reported, and Bryant has previously indicated that he’ll announce his college decision this month. Currently, the Orange is bringing in four ESPN Top 100 recruits: shooting guard Malachi Richardson, power forward Moustapha Diagne, power forward Tyler Lydon and shooting guard Franklin Howard.

SU has fulfilled the NCAA’s scholarship requirements, so the Orange would need a departure from a current player to open up a spot for Bryant. Boeheim said he never knows who’ll be back and who won’t, referencing last year’s early departures as an example.

“I thought Jerami Grant and Tyler Ennis would be here this year,” Boeheim said, laughing. “They’re not.”

With the NCAA sanctions looming, Syracuse may not have the option to bring in Bryant even if someone were to transfer out. But despite the rumors surrounding the team, even Boeheim truly doesn’t know what he’ll have at his disposal at the start of the 2015-16 season.

“You never know who’s going to be here,” Boeheim said. “Recruiting’s still going on. I have no idea who’s going to be here next year.”





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