James Arthur Boeheim Jr. (/ˈbeɪhaɪm/ BAY-hyme; born November 17, 1944) is an American former college basketball coach and current Special Assistant to the Athletic Director at Syracuse University.

He served as an assistant coach for the United States men's national basketball team at the Summer Olympics (2008, 2012, 2016) and the FIBA World Championships (1990, 2006, 2010).

[7][8][9] He graduated from Lyons Central High School, where he starred for coach Dick Blackwell's team.

[10][11][12] Boeheim enrolled in Syracuse University as a student in 1962, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in social science.

By his senior year, he was the varsity team captain and a teammate of All-American Dave Bing, his freshman roommate.

[13] The pair led coach Fred Lewis's Orangemen[b] to a 22–6 overall win–loss record that earned the team's second-ever NCAA tournament berth.

[22][23] During a Syracuse–Georgetown game in the early 1980s, Hoyas star Patrick Ewing was nearly struck by an orange, and at times had endured racial taunts from the SU student section.

Boeheim borrowed a microphone and threatened to forfeit the game if fans continued to throw objects at Ewing.

[31][33][34] In an exhibition game on November 7, 2005, against Division II school Saint Rose from Albany, New York, Boeheim was ejected for the first time in his career after arguing a call late in the first half in the Orange's 86–73 victory.

He was also ejected from Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 22, 2014, against Duke after arguing a player control foul call.

In 2001, during his seventh year as a USA basketball coach, Boeheim helped lead the Young Men's Team to a gold medal at the World Championship in Japan.

On January 14, 2019, Syracuse upset Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium, marking the first time that the Blue Devils had lost to an unranked team at home.

Syracuse started the 2019–20 season slow, losing 48–34 to Virginia, the lowest amount ever scored by a team in Boeheim's career.

[49] SU would win its final game of the season in the ACC tournament beating North Carolina 81–53 and defeating the Tar Heels for the first time since 2014.

This would be the last game played due to COVID-19/[50] In the 2020–21 season SU would once again upset its way to the Sweet 16 beating 3-seeded West Virginia before losing to eventual Final Four participant Houston.

[51][52] On March 6, 2015, the NCAA suspended Boeheim for the first nine games of 2015–16 ACC conference play and took away 12 scholarships over a four-year period, as a result of a multi-year investigation into the university's athletic programs.

[53] The program was forced to vacate a total of 101 wins from the 2004–2005, 2005–2006, 2006–2007, 2010–2011, and 2011–2012 seasons, which included any game during those years where one or more players deemed to have been ineligible played.

[60][61] However, following the departure of his long-time assistant coach and expected successor Mike Hopkins in 2017, Boeheim's contract was extended by Syracuse beyond 2017 for an unknown period.

Boeheim has appeared in numerous commercials throughout Central New York and also had a spot in a nationwide Nike Jordan ad featuring former Syracuse great Carmelo Anthony.

[98][99] Boeheim married his wife Juli in 1997,[1][18][100] and they have three children together: Jimmy and a set of twins, son Buddy and daughter Jamie.

Buddy played guard for his father at Syracuse and signed a two-way contract with the Detroit Pistons after going undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft.

[100][105][106] Around 11:22 p.m. on February 20, 2019, Boeheim was driving his car on Interstate 690 in Syracuse when he struck and killed a 51-year-old man who was standing near the side of the road.

[109][110][111] In April 2023, lawyers for Boeheim agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by the family of a man killed in the crash.

Conference tournament champion † - From 1975 to 1982, the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) organized annual regional end-of-season men's basketball tournaments for independent Division I ECAC member colleges and universities in the Northeastern United States.