Gerry McNamara arrived at Syracuse as a freshman guard in 2002 and left Friday as a program legend. McNamara was named Siena’s head coach after spending the previous 15 years as an Orange assistant coach.
After being hired as a graduate manager in 2009, McNamara rose through the Syracuse coaching ranks under Jim Boeheim and became an assistant coach in 2011 and then associate head coach in 2023 following Boeheim’s retirement and the promotion of ‘Adrian Autry.
McNamara is credited with developing Syracuse’s star guards over the years, including Buddy Boeheim, Cole Swider, Michael Carter-Williams, Tyler Ennis and Dion Waiters.
He will now take over a Siena team that is coming off a 4-28 season, the most losses in program history. The Saints haven’t made the NCAA Tournament since 2010, when Fran McCaffery was coach, despite traditionally being one of the most competitive teams in the MAAC. Denver Nuggets guard Jalen Pickett spent three seasons at Siena before transferring to Penn State and becoming a Big Ten star last season.
As a player, McNamara was recruited to Syracuse by longtime assistant Mike Hopkins, who became Washington’s coach in 2017. McNamara was a four-year starter, helping Syracuse win its first NCAA championship during his first season. year thanks to his clutch shooting, then grew as a player. a scorer after the departure of Carmelo Anthony in 2003-04.
After four seasons and 135 starts, McNamara left Syracuse with the fourth most points in program history, the most minutes played, the second most steals and the third most assists. His No. 3 jersey was retired in 2023.
McNamara’s departure creates a hole in Autry’s roster after a 20-12 campaign in his first season. McNamara was the longest-serving staff assistant; Allen Griffin – another SU alumnus – has been an assistant since 2017, and Brenden Straughn just finished his first season with the Orange.
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