How Jim Boeheim Could Pass Mike Krzyzewski in Wins...Kind Of

With Coach K's retirement, the Syracuse head coach has a chance to pass him on the wins list.

Mike McAllister | Jun 3, 2021

How Jim Boeheim Could Pass Mike Krzyzewski in Wins...Kind Of /

Duke basketball officially announced that long time head coach Mike Krzyzewski will retire after the 2021-22 season. He is currently at the top of the all-time division one men's basketball wins by a head coach with 1,170. He will add to that with the next season, and then his number will be set in stone.

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Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim is still coaching, has not announced any retirement plans, and has a chance to challenge that number. Well, sort of. Boeheim currently has 1,083 wins in reality. However, the NCAA discredited 101 wins due to violations. Therefore, the official NCAA record book reflects an alternate reality of 982 wins.

Disregarding the NCAA record book for a moment, Boeheim's 1,083 wins are 87 behind Krzyzewski. That variance could increase or decrease depending on Duke's and Syracuse's win totals next season. We will assume a 90 win difference for purposes of using a round number. Boeheim/Syracuse will need to average 22.5 wins over four seasons in order to tie Krzyzewski. If Boeheim coaches for five more seasons, the average wins per season drops to 18.

Five more years would put Boeheim at 81 years old and the first 80-year old to coach in a division one college basketball game. In a vacuum that seems almost unfathomable, but who would put it past Boeheim?

In the NCAA's world, Boeheim is currently 188 wins behind Coach K. That is much more difficult but not entirely impossible. Syracuse would have to average 23.5 wins over eight seasons in order to pass Coach K in the NCAA's record books. Eight more years would put Boeheim at 84 years young.

Who knows how many more years Jim Boeheim will coach Syracuse, and certainly with his peers Coach K and Roy Williams retiring, it will bring up that question. His win total will certainly be something to watch for the next few years as long as he remains on the Orange sidelines.

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Published Jun 3, 2021

MIKE MCALLISTER

Title: Publisher All Syracuse Education: Roberts Wesleyan College Location: Syracuse, New York Expertise: Syracuse basketball, football and recruiting. EXPERIENCE Mike McAllister has been covering Syracuse basketball, football and recruiting for more than a decade. Mike's career started with his own free blog as a way to vent following sporting events. Shortly thereafter, a network of basketball sites called Coast 2 Coast Hoops asked him to run their Syracuse site. That site was called Nation of Orange, and Mike quickly established it as a go-to for Syracuse fans. After running Nation of Orange for several months, a position with the Syracuse site on the Scout network became available. After one year as the recruiting expert with Cuse Nation, he was named the publisher. Mike oversaw the transition from Scout to 247Sports, and ran the site on that network for years. Presented with the opportunity to join one of the biggest names in the sports journalism industry, Sports Illustrated, Mike jumped at the chance. All Syracuse was started from scratch by Mike and the Fan Nation team. It has now become a staple for Orange fans of various sports. Mike has broken news on recruiting, Syracuse basketball and football team information and has established himself as the top recruiting inside in the market. He has appeared on local radio shows, television broadcasts, national radio shows and much more. Mr. McAllister has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting and Information Management from Roberts Wesleyan College.