HOUSTON — The way Matthew Moyer sees it, Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim could coach another 4-5 years the way things are going.
“If this run keeps going and we hit maybe two or three more Final Fours, we might have him for another 4 or 5 good ones, so you never know,” Moyer, a 6-foot-8 1/2, 217-pound small forward who played this season at South Kent (CT), told SNY.tv by phone. “We would love to have him. Obviously, he’s a legend. In my opinion, the best coach ever to coach college basketball. Him and Coach K are the top two in my mind.
“If we’re winning and he’s winning games, why retire? He’s in great shape, great health, he has kids that are my age. Why retire?”
Syracuse said last March that Boeheim, 71, would step down after the 2017-18 season, which would be following the sophomore season of Moyer and fellow incoming recruit Tyus Battle of St. Joe’s-Metuchen (N.J.). Associate head coach Mike Hopkins , who has patiently bided his time, has been designated as Boeheim’s heir beginning in 2018.
“The plan before I was hired was that [Boeheim] would work through the three seasons,” Syracuse AD Mark Coyle told Syracuse.com this week, “so he has two more seasons left on his current contract.”
Asked if Boeheim could be extended, Coyle said, “No, my current understanding of the agreement is that when his contract expires, that’s when the window expires.”
Boeheim indicated here Thursday that he has no problem with that time frame.
“I’ve never had ambiguity about how long I would coach,” he said.
What happens if Syracuse wins the national championship this year? What if they make another run next year and/or in 2018?
“I’ve always though you should walk away when you can’t win anymore not walk away when you do win,” he said Thursday.
Whether or not Boeheim stays on beyond 2018, Moyer says he’s cool with it.
“I’m not really concerned about that,” Moyer said. “I love Hop, Hop’s a good coach. He would pick things up right where we left off, and I really don’t mind.”
Battle said he could also see Boeheim sticking around longer than two years.
“I can see that [Boeheim staying another 4-5 years,]” the 6-6 Battle said. “I know Coach Boeheim still has a lot of energy left. I know he loves the game of basketball and loves being the coach of Syracuse basketball, so I guess if we keep on winning and we have multiple years like we had this year, I can definitely see him staying.”
But he is fond of Hopkins and believes he’ll be a great coach.
“Oh yeah, I love Coach Hop,” he said. “He’s the one who really recruited me heavy. We have a great connection and I love Coach Hop.”
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Moyer and Battle both won Gatorade Player of the Year honors this season, Moyer in Connecticut and the 6-6 Battle in New Jersey.
“I’m so excited, there’s so much hype going into next year especially with me and Tyus getting Gatorade Player of the Year and them going to the Final Four,” Moyer said. “Everything is coming like a dream to me right now.”
Moyer said he and his mother bought tickets to see Syracuse’s win over Dayton in the first round. Both he and Battle watched the epic comeback against Virginia with awe, like everyone else.
“Beating Virginia, who’s a 1 seed and getting a chance to play in the Final Four when people said this team shouldn’t get in, that in itself was like wow,” Moyer said.
Moyer said he can’t wait to join the team next year along with Battle.
“Whoever the lineup, I think it’s going to be a great lineup next year,” Moyer said.
Asked how he fits in, he said: “I play basketball. I’m really developing my jump shot. I’m really confident about that going into next year. I shot a great percentage this year. Hopefully i can play some, 2, 3 and 4 and fill in any of the holes that they need just to be an energy guy next year.”
For his part, Battle will come in as a combo guard.
“I think we can be really good, especially with Tyler Lydon and Malachi [Richardson], they have a year under their belt,” Battle said. “And I think they’re just going to really improve over the summer. I think we have a really good chance to make a huge run next year as well. We’re going to be young, but I think we’re going to be really good.”
Moyer and Battle stay in touch and talk about joining forces next season.
The duo both plan to watch the national semifinal against North Carolina on Saturday — Battle at his home and Moyer at a friend’s house — rooting hard for the Orange.
“I’ll probably go over to a friend’s house and watch it on the big screen,” Moyer said. “He has a movie theater down in his basement, so we’ll throw it on there, pop some popcorn and watch Cuse get a win.”
NThe way Matthew Moyer sees it, Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim could coach another 4-5 years the way things are going.
