The Hall of Fame head coach discussed the move to fire Adrian Autry on ESPN2's coverage of the ACC tournament, seemingly take a shot at two current Orange standouts.
After three seasons, Adrian Autry is out as the head men's basketball coach at Syracuse. Autry, hired in 2023 to take over for Jim Boeheim, went 49-48 and failed to make the NCAA Tournament in any of his three campaigns, which resulted in his firing on Wednesday morning.
Syracuse men's basketball put out the following statement out on social media announcing the news:
Adrian Autry '94 will not return as head coach of the men's basketball program for the 2026-27 season. A national search for the program's next head coach has commenced and will move expeditiously.
At this time, we've heard six names connected to the job, including former SU players Mike Hopkins and Gerry McNamara. Legendary broadcaster Dick Vitale has also weighed in with a name we haven't heard yet nationally.
Jim Boeheim's take
Boeheim and Autry have had a very tight relationship that goes back three decades. Autry played for Boeheim from 1990-94 and then served as an assistant coach under him from 2011-23.
Boeheim, who led Syracuse to its only national championship (2023), is part of the ACC Network television crew for the ACC Tournament. He weighed in on Autry's situation on Wednesday.
"...Well, you know what happens. You just don’t have enough resources, that puts you behind. You look at the league: BC, (Boston College) Georgia Tech, now Syracuse, three of the least NIL (name, image, likeness) money in the league. You have to look at that. With Adrian Autry, his two best players had horrible years. If you take any team in this league and you take their two best players, and they have really, really bad years: like Cam Boozer and Isaiah Evans have a bad year at Duke, they don’t win. That’s what happened this year at Syracuse. His two best players just didn’t play well. At the end of the day, the head coach is responsible, Adrian Autry knows that. I think he’s a good coach. I think he got in a situation where his best players just didn't play the way they needed to play, and it cost him his job."
Boeheim didn't specifically say it, but he's likely referring to Donnie Freeman and JJ Starling. After scoring 17.8 ppg as a junior, Starling averaged 10.9 ppg as a senior, the lowest output of his career. Freeman averaged 16.5 ppg, which led the team, but his production fluctuated in conference play.
What's next for Syracuse?
With the official decision made on Autry's future, Syracuse will officially move forward in the hiring process. In addition to hiring a new coach, SU is hiring a new athletic director, and that process is coming to a close. Once the hire is finalized, the department can spearhead the basketball search with more urgency.
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