After rumors swirled earlier this week about a new coaching hire, Syracuse officially announced Allen Griffin will join head coach Jim Boeheim’s staff as an assistant coach.

Griffin filled the vacancy left open by former head-coach designate Mike Hopkins, who left to become Washington’s head coach. Like Hopkins, Griffin will coach the centers. He spent the last six seasons as an assistant coach at Dayton, but returns to the school where he played from 1997-2001 and served as an administrative assistant in 2003 and 2004.

“We are fortunate to be able to add someone of Allen’s caliber to our program,” Boeheim said in a press release. “In addition to the great familiarity he has with Syracuse basketball, he owns valuable experience gained coaching with other programs.

“… Allen’s a proven national recruiter and he coached the big men at Dayton. He is a great fit for our staff.”

CBS Sports reported that Griffin would be hired as SU’s newest assistant on Sunday afternoon. Later that evening, Syracuse said that it hadn’t made any hires yet.

In his senior season with the Orange, Griffin averaged 10.8 points and 6.5 assists per game as a captain and starting point guard. After leaving his post as an administrative assistant to Boeheim, Griffin took his first coaching job as an assistant at St. Francis (New York) College in 2005. He then coached at Providence and Hofstra before joining Dayton’s staff.

“I can’t express how excited I am to be back at Syracuse,” Griffin said. “It was a real honor to play for a Hall of Fame coach in Coach Boeheim and I feel the same way about being a member of his staff.

“I love Syracuse. I’ve enjoyed the places and people I’ve worked with in the past but I’ve always hoped I’d get the opportunity to come back. It’s like home to me.”

Published on April 6, 2017 at 4:43 pm

Contact Connor: cgrossma@syr.edu | @connorgrossman