Jay Bilas Ripped Jim Boeheim Over His Comments About Jalen Johnson
Jim Boeheim made waves on Thursday when he ripped Duke star freshman Jalen Johnson for opting out of the season. Syracuse's head coach was harsh in his assessment of the decision and almost seemed to take it personally. Jay Bilas was not happy with those remarks and took aim at Boeheim on Friday.
Boeheim claimed the Blue Devils were better without Johnson, that he was actually hurting them and that they had two "monster" wins since he opted out:
Jim Boeheim on Duke star freshman Jalen Johnson's decision to opt-out: "That guy was hurting them so they actually are much better now without him. He was just doing some things & keeping other people from playing that are good. They've had two monster wins since he's opted out."
— Mike Curtis (@MikeACurtis2) February 19, 2021
This week there were also stories floating around that Johnson's "camp" wasn't on the same page as Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. Bilas shot that down during the latest episode of Bald Men on Campus while also going after Boeheim, saying his comments about Johnson were inappropriate.
Here's the segment:
Jalen Johnson does not have a “camp,” “people in his ear,” or a “posse.” He has a family. He has a mother and father helping him, with his best interests in mind, making decisions. We can differ with the decision, but the undertones of the criticism of Johnson are concerning. pic.twitter.com/icKqC9u0Cp
— Jay Bilas (@JayBilas) February 19, 2021
Man, Bilas is the best. That was an A+ rant that managed to be intelligent and insightful while completely taking Boeheim down.
In case you don't know the backstory of the James Akinjo controversy, Boeheim ripped the former Georgetown guard when he decided to transfer in December of 2019. After Syracuse lost to Georgetown following Akinjo's transfer, Boeheim said the following: "They got rid of a guy that wouldn't pass the ball to anybody and just shot every time. That's why they're good now." As Bilas noted, Akinjo averaged 5.2 assists as a freshman and 4.4 as a sophomore before transferring. He's averaging 5.2 assists for Arizona this season.
Boeheim's comments were inappropriate. Johnson didn't play for him and he went out of his way to rip him. Either "no comment" the situation or give a non-answer about him being talented. There's no reason to go out of your way to blast the kid. Bilas is absolutely right, it was completely out of line.