Syracuse basketball first-year head coach Adrian Autry has said more than once of late that he thinks forward Benny Williams is poised for a big junior season, and a top national analyst/scout recently echoed that sort of sentiment.

The 6-foot-9, 210-pound Williams, who hails from the Washington, D.C., area, and was rated a five-star, top-25 prospect by Rivals.com in the 2021 class, showed some of his potential as a sophomore, as the Orange went 17-15 overall during the 2022-23 season under then-head coach Jim Boeheim.

With Autry now at the helm of the ‘Cuse, some of the chatter I’ve come across from pundits is that perhaps Benny Williams can play a bit more freely in the upcoming campaign, without having to worry about getting a quick hook. We’ll see about that.

Last Friday, when Syracuse basketball defeated Division II Daemen from the Buffalo area, 81-68, in an exhibition on the Hill, Williams was solid for sure. Per a box score provided on cuse.com, he played 24 minutes, tallying 11 points, six rebounds, two blocks and three turnovers.

Benny Williams, according to Orange coaches, continues to work hard at improving his long-distance jumper, although he still sometimes shoots it without enough arc. Yet against Daemen, he did connect on 5-of-8 from the field, and that included making several perimeter attempts.

A top expert is high on Syracuse basketball junior forward Benny Williams.

The ‘Cuse has one more exhibition, on Wednesday, Nov. 1, beginning at 7 pm, against the College of Saint Rose from Albany, N.Y., at the JMA Wireless Dome. The 2023-24 season officially gets underway on Monday, Nov. 6, when Syracuse basketball welcomes New Hampshire to Central New York.

In recent days, Jamie Shaw of On3 shared a post on his X page about Williams. Shaw, who is one of the top national analysts/scouts out there, wrote, “Benny Williams has a lot of tools. He was a late bloomer out of HS & I’m curious if he takes that step for Syracuse this season. Listed at 6-9, he has great length with easy explosion. Adrian Autry appears to have a lot of confidence in him, and the balance/mechanics look clean.”

At the Orange’s recent media day, Autry said that Benny Williams has gotten stronger and is working hard to expand his game, and the ‘Cuse head coach believes that Williams in 2023-24 will display a keen ability to proficiently score both in the interior and on the perimeter.

Undeniably, if Williams can be more consistent on both ends of the floor, day in and day out, and that includes his versatile scoring production, defense and rebounding, I am confident that he will shine as a junior and prove a massive contributor as Syracuse basketball looks to get back to the NCAA Tournament following a two-year absence.

In his sophomore campaign, Benny Williams did hit on 39.6 percent from the 3-point line, in somewhat limited attempts. In Boeheim’s rotation, he averaged 22.3 minutes per contest, although I anticipate that number to increase this coming term.

A native of Bowie, Md., Williams came to the Hill after spending his senior year with the post-grad team at the powerhouse IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. His lack of playing time under Boeheim was perhaps the biggest hot-button topic among ‘Cuse fans during 2021-22, but that is long gone, and the Orange has a new head coach.

I acknowledge that Syracuse basketball has yet to play an official game, but I’m excited to watch Benny Williams go full beast mode as a junior.

• Published on 11/01/2023 at 5:00 PM EDT
• Last updated on 11/01/2023 at 5:00 PM EDT