In the wake of legendary Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim finally calling it a career, the torch has officially been passed to assistant coach Adrian Autry.
So, who exactly is Boeheim’s 51-year-old successor?
Autry was born in Monroe, N.C. before moving to Harlem, where he grew up with his mother and sisters.
He was a highly recruited player out of high school, winning the state championship with St. Nicholas of Tolentine and being crowned a McDonald’s All-American his senior year.
Like Boeheim, he started his Syracuse career as a player.
During Boeheim’s 47-year tenure as head coach, Autry was a 6-foot-4 guard, playing from 1990-94.
He had a phenomenal career with the Orange, scoring over 1,500 points and making the Big East first-team as a senior.
He averaged an impressive 16.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 6.1 assists, and 1.6 steals a game in his final year.
After his collegiate career, Autry entered his name in the NBA draft but was not selected.
Instead, he began a 10-year career playing in Europe and in the United States Basketball League.
When his playing career came to an end, Autry decided to pick up coaching.
In 2006, he began coaching at the high school and AAU level before transitioning to college in 2008.
He would land a job as Virginia Tech’s director of basketball operations, eventually being promoted to assistant coach after two years.
The University of Dayton had its eye on Autry for their associate head coaching job in 2011, but when the Orange had an assistant coaching job opening, he couldn’t help but reunite with his former coach in Syracuse.
During his time as Boeheim’s assistant, Autry was essential in developing some of the Syracuse’s recent stars. Jerami Grant, Tyler Ennis, Oshae Brissett and Tyler Lydon all grew into solid NBA draft picks.
Grant, most notably, is a key player for the Trail Blazers this season, averaging 20.6 points a game.
In becoming the heir to a legendary coach, Autry spoke about how his time with Boeheim has effected his life.
“There have been very few stronger influential forces in my life than Syracuse University and Jim Boeheim. They have both played such important roles and without either of them, I am certain I would not have this incredible opportunity before me,” Autry said in a release on Wednesday.
“I have spent much of my time in the game of basketball learning from Jim and am so grateful to him for preparing me to carry on the winning tradition that is Orange Basketball,” he added.
Syracuse.com recently spoke to former Syracuse basketball players who had strong relationship with Autry.
“He was a born leader. I saw that the first day I met him. He was just always saying the right thing to you as a teammate and a point guard,” exclaimed Autry’s former teammate John Wallace. “I saw how hard he worked to be a pro player. He wore a weight vest and did all the extra work just to play. He was tough, too. He played on a bad Achilles for two years at ‘Cuse and never missed a game. I expect his teams will take on that type of personality.’’
The University will formally introduce their new head basketball coach on Friday at 10 a.m. in the Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball Center.
ESPN ranked Autry as the No. 5 assistant coach who was age 40 and under back in 2012. He becomes the first African-American head coach in Syracuse history.
Current Washington Huskies head basketball coach and former Syracuse assistant Mike Hopkins said it best.
“He understands the tradition and what he represents there,” he told Syracuse.com. “It’s DC, Melo, John Wallace and Rony Seikaly. It’s the history. He was a great player himself. He knows the level you have to be at to succeed in that arena.”