ITHACA, N.Y. — Jimmy Boeheim, a senior forward at Cornell and the oldest son of longtime Syracuse men’s basketball coach Jim Boeheim, has placed his name in the NCAA transfer portal, according to a university spokesman.
The decision came after the Ivy League announced last week that it had canceled its basketball season, athletic communications director Jeremy Hartigan said Tuesday.
The 6-foot-8 Boeheim averaged a team-high 16.7 points and 5.6 rebounds in 21 games last season. His younger brother, Buddy, a junior guard at Syracuse, said Friday in a Zoom call that Jimmy was upset at the Ivy League decision.
“I couldn’t imagine finding out right now that our season was canceled,” Buddy said. :All the hard work he’s put in this summer. We worked out every day together. I was really looking forward to see what he was going to do this year. He was going to have a big year.”
The Ivies don’t allow athletes to play after graduating, even if they have a year of eligibility left, so Jimmy Boeheim could transfer to another school after he graduates and play that final year. He also could delay graduation until next year.
“He’s not sure what he’s going to do yet,” Buddy said. “He’s just kind of taking it day by day.”