Vent Mode: It wasn't the refs, it's 50% Buzz, 50% the team; Hope is my offseason theme

So call me the new kid on the block, but how long does it typically take for a coach to turn around a basketball program? I know there are outliers (see Bob Huggins 2007-2010) who typically make an instant impact, but I'm not sure that they had the cards that were dealt to them like they were dealt to Buzz after the JJ fiasco.
I ask this because I'm trying really hard to feel optimistic for the future. I know we landed Nolley (no pun intended), and I know if NAW sticks around we'll be a pretty competitive team (which I don't see him sticking around because the NBA is all about potential talent now). I know Dream will be back on the team, and hopefully Outlaw will be back to form to fill that void left by Hill's lack of confidence at the moment. But I heard someone in another thread say Tony Bennett took a good amount of time to turn the UVA situation around, but I started thinking to myself, he was recruiting at a pretty high level too, and his program is firmly based upon defense, so the players that he recruits fit that system to a T. And defense is huge this time of year (for example see yesterday's performance).

Now I'm not Buzz bashing, I love the coach that he is, more than probably most on this site. I've started full threads about how great of a person he is in my opinion. However, I can't help but wonder, how far are we away from an actual tournament run? I think losing Bibbs is a big blow, as would losing NAW to the draft. We still would have a senior in J Rob, and players like Pig, Bede, and PJ with a year under their belts. Is the team we have for next year enough to get us past the first round? Comparing last season, and this season, just seems like a wash to me (yet again not throwing shade at the team or Buzz). We had two competitive seasons, two underwhelming ACC tournament runs, and a first round exit from the NCAA tourney (regardless of the opponents seeding).

I go back to my question that I've been asking all season though. Who is the alpha? Who is the player who will take the bull by the horns and say we're not losing this game? J Rob tried really hard to be that this year for us, but I don't think it worked out all the time because he already expends so much energy just playing the 1 position. Kerry tried to be that, but he is too much of a finesse player, and hasn't figured out how to use his agility to his advantage in the post, nor has he figured out how to restrain himself from silly defensive help fouls. Who's the Seth Allen, who's the LeDay who says, get on my back I'm taking us to the promised land. Can we really expect a player like Nolley to do that in his first year? A incoming freshman getting adjusted to the changes in pace of play (college versus high school). A player trying to adjust to the rigor of road traveling, and the rigor of the ACC grindhouse schedule, where you play a tough team night in and night out.

I'm not trying to be all doom and gloom, I know we are on an upward trajectory, but I for one refuse to blame that loss last night on a ref's no call. It was a blocking foul, no doubt about it, but as a team, when are we going to take responsibility for completing all the nuances during the game that ensure that the game doesn't come down to a last minute bucket/foul? When are we going to recruit players/teach players to be laterally, more capable at closing out on defense if we're going to predominantly run a zone defense, since man to man rarely works for an undersized team? When are we going to close out better above the arc? When are we going to rebound better, especially on the offensive side for the opposing team? When are we going to stop playing isolation basketball with Kerry in the post on a spin move? When is CC going to learn to control that athleticism when going down the lane? When is Hill going to realize that he is a talented player who deserves to play in the ACC? Aspects like these and others go back to coaching, so as much as I hate to, I lay this at Buzz's feet. Fundamentals will make or break a team. Our biggest Achilles heel this year was turnovers, poor 3 point shooting closeouts, and stagnant offensive second halves this year. Those aspects reared their heads time and time again.

I hope this offseason Buzz takes the approach that no team will shoot their best game against us, because we will have hands in the faces of the opponents, we will rotate better, and we will make every shot tougher for the opponent. I hope he starts offseason camp with defense (Even Buzz admitted that he started emphasizing defense too late this year). I hope we see the importance of the details. I hope an alpha is available next season. I hope Kerry embraces his quick feet and realizes, like LeDay did early on, that no big can stop him off the dribble spin move when it's completed properly. I hope that CC sees that rushing down the lane with reckless abandon without a ounce of care for ball control is fruitless. I hope Pig and Bede work hard as hell during the offseason to step into the shoes of 5 so that he isn't physically taxed all season with the bumps and bruises of going down the lane. I hope Dream and Outlaw become intricate cogs to a successful season. Hope is all we can do as Hokie fans. Hope is what gets us to tune into the next season's worth of games. Hope is what makes Sandman so exhilarating, when those chords kick in we hope in that moment that we're about to run this team out of whatever stadium we're in. I love being a Hokie, I'm heartbroken still this morning, but I will continue to have hope in Buzz, the boys, a future alpha, and in a tournament run that will leave us proud next year. Onto 2018-2019 Hokies basketball. -Go Hokies, thank you 10, and thank you 11!

Onto next season boys and girls:
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Pain is Temporary, Chicks Dig Scars
Glory is Forever, Let's Go Hokies!!

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"Now Miami wants to talk about it." *Cue Enter Sandman*

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Warning: this post occasionally contains strong language (which may be unsuitable for children), unusual humor (which may be unsuitable for adults), and advanced mathematics (which may be unsuitable for liberal-arts majors)..

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Here lies It's a Stroman Jersey I Swear, surpassed in life by no one because he intercepted it.

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