The Virginia Tech Hokies Buzzketball Review Preview: Justin Bibbs

The first season of the Buzz Williams experience is over, and now's a time not just to look back at Virginia Tech basketball, but look forward at what's to come. To do this, Brian and Pierson have decided not to write a single extensive review on Buzzketball. Instead, they'll examine the past and future by looking at the individuals that make it up. The series continues with rising-sophomore wing Justin Bibbs, who, like the month of March, came in like a lion and went out like a lamb.

Pierson: Alright, Brian. Let's continue our journey through the Buzzketball roster by taking a look at the up-and-down season of freshman standout Justin Bibbs.

Bibbs came out of the gate firing, providing a young Hokies team with a confident scoring option to pair with gunner Adam Smith on the wing. With each passing game, hyperbole began to run rampant as Hokie Nation prognosticated Bibbs could very well go down as one of the greatest Hokies ever. The excitement of the fanbase reached critical mass following consecutive 20-plus point games against Syracuse and Florida State to open the ACC slate. But a little over a week later, Bibbs was sidelined with a concussion.

Prior to his injury in mid-January, we all wondered whether Bibbs could maintain the torrid pace few had seen prior to his setting foot on campus. After spending the previous year playing second (or third) fiddle to lottery-bound wunderkind DeAngelo Russell at Florida's Montverde Academy, many questioned if Bibbs possessed the requisite leadership and killer instinct necessary to be this team's alpha male.

After two-and-a-half weeks on the sideline, Bibbs struggled to re-discover his early season form. Bibbs averaged 8.8 points down the stretch (including 7 of 13 games in single digits), compared to 13.6 PPG prior to going down.

So what happened? Maybe the evolution of the team dynamic during his absence made it difficult for Bibbs to re-establish himself. Maybe Bibbs struggled to shake off the concussion symptoms. Maybe he simply hit the dreaded "freshman wall."

It was a tale of two seasons for Bibbs, and all I want to know is will the real Justin Bibbs please stand up?

Brian: Maybe the worst thing to happen to Bibbs, expectations-wise at least, was the way he started the season. When any basketball player starts a season averaging 13.6 points a game while shooting 47 (FORTY-SEVEN!!!) percent from three, you have to realize that it's not sustainable.

The best players in smaller leagues can maybe hit half of their triples. But this was year one for Justin, and he plays in the best conference in America.

A few months ago I was obsessed with the notion of his concussion hindering his play. While there's a chance that it could have had lingering physical ramifications, I think the worst thing about the injury may have been its timing. He got hurt near the tail end of a two-month long hot streak, and when he came back after almost three weeks it was over.

Sure you could also use the tried and true freshman wall argument as well. There was more tape out on him, teams knew that they had to run tightly with him off screens and made Bibbs work hard for every shot attempt. That's definitely going to wear a 19-year-old down and lead to performances like 1-10 from the field against Virginia and 2-13 against Miami (in the ACC tournament).

I really like his potential. He's a shooter, but not one that necessarily needs a ton of off-ball action to get his shot. Also, being left handed is a sneaky advantage because it forces defenders to adjust how they contest.

The only thing I don't like: doesn't have a great nickname, or ability to have one. Only thing I can come up with is "Bibbsy", but that kind of sounds like a brand of washcloths or something.

Pierson: Completely agree on the nickname conundrum. Here's a half-baked look at nicknames that immediately come to mind:

• "Bibbsy": Logical choice, but too much of a hockey nickname.
• "Bibi": Nickname of polarizing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, plus I've always thought it sounded a bit too effeminate.
• "B" or "JB": Acceptable, but kind of lazy. We're better than that.
• "Lefty": Unoriginal. Next.
• "Beebop and Rocksteady": Throwback to the Ninja Turtles, Bibbs and Jalen "Rock" Hudson are combined into a tag team duo that (hopefully) harkens back to the days of The Untouchables.

With Adam Smith jacking threes down in Hotlanta and unproven commodities in the three incoming freshmen, Bibbs will enter fall camp as the team's number one scoring option. Could a guy like Seth Allen, Jalen Hudson or even Ahmed Hill emerge as a more consistent offensive threat? Sure. But for the time being, the spotlight is focused squarely on Bibbs.

Look, Buzz is building a team that will almost surely not be reliant on one guy and we should all be excited about that. But you can only advance so far as a team without a true cold blooded closer that can win you a tight game in the waning minutes or seconds. Ultimately, it's about respect. This team will need a guy (or guys) that other teams are forced to key on late in order to keep defenses honest.

After an up-and-down first season, I would love to see Bibbs work on his ability to create shots in one-on-one situations. We've seen him operate well off the screen and in transition. But can Bibbs breakdown his defender to create open looks for himself or others? If he can find success early and establish himself as one of those types, it could go a long way towards opening up chances for the other capable shooters on this team.

Brian: I'm honestly not sure if I agree with anything you just said, so I will cut you down categorically and without mercy. GET READY FOR THE THUNDER, BOOHER.

(Cues up theme to First Take)

(There's a theme to First Take, right? Maybe? No? I've never watched it.)

(Cues up Danger Zone instead.)

First of all, Beebop and Rocksteady were villains in TMNT. Have you ever seen Bibbs smile? Not the kind of grin a bad guy has. Also Bibi? Too close to Gigli, which is the movie that single handedly rendered Ben Affleck's career to a smoking pile of rubble. Do you want the young man's career to end in a smoking pile of rubble?

As far as the scoring goes, I'm not really sure what you saw to think that he'll be far and away the top scoring option on the team. Don't get me wrong, I'm very high on him as well, but let's remember that our opinion of him may be slightly skewed.

He came in as one of the most polished freshmen we've seen in Blacksburg, to a team that was basically a blank canvas for someone to grab a hold of and make his own. Due to his more advanced (for his age) skill set, he succeeded with flying colors in the beginning of the year. But I think we know who he is as an offensive player right now.

He can hit an open three (important), is a solid catch-and-shoot guy and can do enough off the bounce to start for the rest of his days. But is he someone who's going to be a first team All-ACC player for years to come? I have my doubts.

I liken him to many NBA rookies that you see come in and have a great first year. Shareef Abdur-Rahim killed it in 1997 and made first team all-rookie after scoring almost 19 points a game. Abdur-Rahim was a very good scorer and a good player, but two guys he made that first rookie team over? Kobe Bryant and Ray Allen.

He had a nice season, but career-wise Shareef's ceiling simply wasn't as high.

Looking at this roster, I think Bibbs is still one of the more polished players on it, but I question a future that involves him being option number one. He could be option two, even option one-A on many nights, but that's as high as I see him reaching.

Pierson: "Get ready for the thunder?" A shockingly vivid look behind the curtain at a Friday evening in the Marcolini household.

1. I have to be honest and say that I wasn't even aware First Take was still on television. But then again, the only tv's tuned in to ESPN2 at that time of day are probably in doctor's office waiting rooms, so who cares. A quick Google search revealed that unlike their content, First Take apparently takes their theme songs very seriously. Good for them.
2. I have no problem with nicknames that have a villainous origin. We could use a bit of an edge.
3. In addition to dating JLo and starring in Daredevil and Jersey Girl, Gigli was one of the far-too-many mistakes Affleck made during the aughts. But smoking pile of rubble? Just when we thought he couldn't possibly be any dumber, he totally redeems himself with movies like The Town and Argo. Now he's about to make a gazillion dollars and hopefully not shit on Batman and Suicide Squad. Plus, he'll always be O'Bannion from Dazed & Confused.
4. Bonus points for the Shareef Abdur-Raheem reference. But it's hard not to feel like you're writing Bibbs off to an extent.

Yes, Bibbs did limp to across the finish line last season. But I feel like he showed us enough to feel good about his potential. Remember, I said that he will enter fall camp as this team's number one scoring option, not necessarily be this team's number one scoring option. I get uncomfortable forecasting how unknowns will slide into this roster; maybe fresh faces like Seth Allen and/or Chris Clarke will take the reins and lead this team. Until proven otherwise, I would prefer it if Bibbs approached the off-season as though he will be the alpha dog next year. As you said, worst case is that we have multiple threats. Sprinkle in the occasional 25-point performance from Jalen Hudson or 15-and-10 from Satchel Pierce and Buzzketball is in business.

Previously in this series:

Devin Wilson here