An Orange legend gets an opportunity to rebuild a program from the ground up.
The Mayor of Scranton is saying farewell to his second home.
Gerry McNamara, a four-year starter for the Syracuse Orange, 2003 National Champion, and full-time assistant coach since 2011, will leave the program to become head coach of Siena’s men’s basketball program.
It’s official. Syracuse assistant Gerry McNamara and Siena has agreed on a contract. GMAC will be introduced as Siena’s new mens head basketball coach at a press conference before the end the end of the week @WNYT
— Rodger Wyland (@RodgerWyland) March 27, 2024
UPDATE: There are conflicting reports on whether the deal is completed.
While a deal could very likely still happen, it seems unlikely Siena would have a press conference with McNamara this week, given all the attention surrounding the NCAA women’s regional (hello, Caitlin Clark) that begins with media availability tomorrow and games on Friday. https://t.co/VIFOpPWkYc
— Mark Singelais (@MarkSingelais) March 27, 2024
McNamara coached teams that went onto make nine NCAA Tournament appearances, including Final Four runs in 2013 and 2016. He helped develop NBA talent including Dion Waiters, Michael Carter-Williams, Tyler Ennis, Malachi Richardson, and Elijah Hughes.
The 2022-23 regular season ended with McNamara’s #3 jersey being hung in the Dome rafters, alongside teammate Hakim Warrick. There are rumors that he was at least considered as the successor to Jim Boeheim before Adrian Autry instead replaced the 47-year vet.
McNamara didn’t miss a single game during his time with the Orange(men). To this day, he remains SU’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made (400) and total minutes played (4,799) – and who could forget when he willed ‘Cuse to the 2006 Big East Title with a tournament performance for the history books.
As someone who also grew up in the Scranton area, I personally cannot be happier for G-Mac. He represents himself and the region with a ton of class and humility, and with no path to eventually taking over his alma mater, I can’t fault him one bit for wanting an opportunity elsewhere.
Gerry, thank you for all you’ve done for SU – and may you win many more than 10 f****** games as a head coach.