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With Syracuse’s 2021-22 men’s basketball season kicking off just days away, head coach Jim Boeheim kicked off the annual team media day by highlighting newcomers to the team. . Syracuse sacks two starters from last season’s squad, Buddy Boeheim and Joe Girard III. New team members are Jimmy Boeheim of Cornell, Cole Swider of Villanova, Symir Torrence of Marquette and Benny Williams, a five-star freshman.

Syracuse finished last season with an 18-10 overall record, eighth in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Orange secured a berth in the NCAA tournament as the 11th seed and behind a solid shot from Buddy and Girard, SU upset San Diego State and West Virginia before falling to Houston. in the Sweet Sixteen. During the offseason, the team lost three starters, Quincy Guerrier, Marek Dolezaj and Alan Griffin. Now Syracuse is looking to capitalize on their success with a variety of new transfers.

Here are three takeaways from the Orange Tip-Off event:

Improved shooting

One of Syracuse’s strengths in their run for the Sweet Sixteen last season was shooting, especially with Buddy, who scored 125 points in five games of the NCAA tournament. The Oranges still have Buddy and Girard, but also add Swider, who was one of the top shooters in the country in high school. Boeheim mentioned how Swider’s unique blend of size and shooting prowess gives Syracuse a new dimension to his offense.

“He’s probably the best shooter before we’ve had that I can think of,” Boeheim said. “He shoots at a high level, a very high level.

Swider suffered an ankle injury during recent training, but Boeheim expects him to be back on the pitch for the start of the season.

Replacement of Marek Dolezaj

Boeheim said he expects the offense to play out a little differently this year depending on the personnel. He called Marek Dolezaj, who graduated after last season, the “team MVP” for Dolezaj’s role in managing attack and defense.

There are a few candidates to replace Dolezaj’s unique skills, including Jimmy and Williams. During the Orange Tip-Off, the pair played both small and powerful with different styles. Jimmy came out of the screens to catch and shoot 3 pointers, while Williams often handled the ball and tried to either create his own scoring opportunity or switch to another shooter.

The pair with Swider will replace Warrior, Griffin and Robert Braswell. Boeheim also noted that the size of center Jesse Edwards should also help Orange improve their offensive and defensive rebound, as this year’s squad is larger than last year’s.

Preview next season

As much of the focus was on this season, Boeheim also addressed any speculation he might retire when Jimmy and Buddy graduate. The answer was a categorical no.

“I never said that, I never really thought about it,” Boeheim said. “If you want the absolute truth, I coach this team and recruit like I have for 20 years.”

Boeheim also said he told next year’s rookies he would train them. The class of 2022 is led by two four-star forwards, Chris Bunch and Justin Taylor. Three-star rookies Quadir Copeland, Peter Carey and Maliq Brown are also part of the squad.

“This is the best recruiting class we’ve ever had, period,” said Boeheim. “When you look at the balance in a recruiting class, it’s hard to have a guy in every position and we did. “