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Standing on the court built in his childhood home, Buddy Boeheim drilled a 3 and turned to a camera to say his line. But he messed up, saying “Three Swishes Cereal.” On the next try, same mistake. Then it became, “Three Wishes Syracuse” before going back to “Three Swishes Cereal.” Finally, on take 44, Buddy nailed the line: “Three Wishes Cereal.”

Of course, it was all a part of the commercial, a little “easter egg” for Syracuse fans that the co-founder of Three Wishes, Ian Wishingrad, added to the script. In reality, Buddy said they only did about five or six takes. Wishingrad said athletes are rarely good actors, which makes filming commercials tough. But with Buddy, it was different.

“The whole thing was done in like an hour and a half,” Wishingrad said. “I’ve never done something so fast before.”

The commercial was an immediate success after it was released last July, earning 100,000 organic views, Wishingrad said. But it wasn’t just Buddy’s acting skills that caught the eye of viewers: the cereal box next to him at the end of the commercial had Syracuse fans craving for a spoonful of Three Wishes — a brand that Buddy eats himself.

“It had people running into Wegmans going ‘I want the Buddy box,’” Wishingrad said.

But Wishingrad couldn’t satisfy Syracuse fans’ cravings immediately. Printing and producing the boxes took six months, and the Buddy cereal boxes finally hit Wegmans’ shelves on Tuesday and are also available online, at the Carrier Dome and at the SU campus store. The commercial may be a half-year-old, but it provided a glimpse into the off-court personality of one of Syracuse’s biggest stars.

“I was expecting (the commercials) to be cringey almost, but he’s doing a good job. He’s a pretty good actor. He’s selling it well,” said Jimmy, Buddy’s brother. “He’s the goofiest kid I know. He acts like a 10-year-old half the time. It’s awesome. … (The commercial) definitely fits his personality.”

Buddy Boeheim holding a wide variety of Three Wishes Cereal boxes. Courtesy of Ian Wishingrad

Buddy has always been the brother more inclined to entertain, said his mother, Juli. When he was younger, Buddy would have “his own kind of language” and make up songs and dances, Juli said.

“He’s just always been a fun-loving kid,” Juli said. “He was born that way.”

Juli said she speculates that Buddy’s personality comes from her side of the family, saying that she and her sister Jane have “crazy fun” personalities similar to Buddy’s. Juli remembered when the boys were younger and Jimmy had a few of his friends over, it had “been one zinger after another” from Buddy. As the group entered a restaurant, Juli tried to tell her son to bring things down a notch.

“There we are getting ready to walk in the restaurant (and) I’m like ‘Bud that’s it, don’t put on a show,’” Juli said. “And Jimmy goes, ‘No, Buddy put on a show,’ because it’s so much fun.”

Since name, image and likeness legislation was passed over the summer, Buddy’s been able to “put on a show” in a different way. Three Wishes was Buddy’s first commercial by himself, but he’s used to seeing camera crews around his family’s home, which has operated as sets for scenes starring his dad, Jim Boeheim, Juli said. 

Juli said she helped oversee the filming process but allowed Buddy to have fun with it. Jim was in and out, she said, so most of the commercial was left to Buddy. The first thing Buddy told his mom afterward was how much he enjoyed doing it.

“The biggest thing I wanted to get out of it right away is just fan interaction — interacting with fans in different ways — and also just doing really fun stuff in the community,” Buddy said.

When Buddy committed to Syracuse, Juli said she hoped fans would get to know him for who he is rather than just his exploits on the court. The commercial has already given SU fans a new look at one of its stars and a product that central New York residents can get a bite of.

Published on January 11, 2022 at 2:22 pm

Contact Gaurav: gshetty@syr.edu