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Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim thanks the Orange faithful at the end of his 900th win celebration on Dec. 17, 2012. Sitting on 998 "real" wins, Boeheim knows that the NCAA has stripped him of 101 of those triumphs ... meaning 1,000 isn't really going to be 1,000 if and when it is attained. In the eyes of some, anyway.

(Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com)

Syracuse, N.Y. -- Recognizing that there is the possibility that Jim Boeheim could achieve his 1,000th career coaching victory on Saturday afternoon against Virginia in the Carrier Dome, I sought an audience with the big man, himself.

And so, without asking about my agenda, Boeheim agreed to meet with me in his office at the Melo Center up there on the Syracuse University campus on Monday afternoon.

Now, I know, as do so many others who follow SU basketball, that the NCAA has stripped Boeheim of 101 triumphs as punishment for his program's various infractions. But still ...

In his 41st season running the Orange, Boeheim is -- on the court -- sitting on 998 wins. Which meant, with a trip to North Carolina State and a date with the Wolfpack looming tonight, the time was right for a little chat.

What follows is part of it ...

Me: "I want to talk about what's coming up."

Jim Boeheim: "There's nothing coming up. There's nothing coming up."

Me: "You're going to win your 1,000th game."

JB: "Not according to that (pointing to a press guide). So I'm not discussing it. I'm not. There's nothing to discuss. It's not happening. The NCAA has told us it's not happening. The NCAA has told us that we can't talk about it and we can't do anything. It's not happening. I can't talk about something that's not happening. I cannot talk about anything. Look at the record books. There are no wins. The wins are not there."

Me: "But the eyes do not deceive. You have won 998 games."

JB: "That's true. That part is true. The only thing I can say is that we have won 998 games. That's all I can say. We have won 998 games. We don't have them all, but we have won them. That I can say."

Me: "But ... "

JB: "The NCAA has written and sent us a letter. We got a letter right away. 'You delete all these, and this is how many wins you have. Period.' We're forbidden from saying something in the Dome at any time. Or post anything. Or congratulate in any way."

Me: "Well, when the time comes, Juli (Boeheim's wife) will wave a sign with '1,000' on it, right?"

JB: "She will not. No, she will not. She's part of my family. The NCAA would probably say it would be a violation. I don't know that for a fact. But I think that they would."

Me: "You've never been reluctant to speak your mind ... "

JB: "I speak my mind on everything. I'm not reluctant. I've won 998 games, but I don't have 998 wins. Everybody knows that I've won them. The NCAA knows that. They've taken away games. I mean, they can't say, 'You didn't win.' They can say, 'We've taken them away.' I don't think that's a fine line. I think that's a statement of fact."

Me: "Alright, so let's talk about the arc from No. 1 to No. 998."

JB: "I don't talk about that stuff. Eight hundred ... or 900 ... or 950 ... or any of that. I'm happy that we've won a lot of games. I don't think about it. I don't. I don't go by what the records are. I live in the moment. I try to win as many games as I can in any given year. That's what I've always tried to do. But I don't dwell on the past games. That doesn't help you win games now. If that helped win games now, I'd dwell on them."

Me: "OK, but when you win No. 1,000, will you hoist a glass of wine or something?"

JB: "I'm not sure. We didn't at 900. Or 800."

Me: "Who didn't?"

JB: "We didn't."

Me: "Come on. Nothing?"

JB: "Nothing. Somebody gave me a thing with '900' on it. We had dinner. That's it. I don't even know which team 900 is. If I knew, I'd tell you."

Me: "So, I've got nothing."

JB: "You've got a story. You just have to figure out what it is. There's always a story."

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