Yesterday ESPN's Jeff Goodman reported that Trevor Thompson will transfer. As a freshman Thompson averaged 4.97 points, 4.67 rebounds, and started Tech's last 11 games of the season. The Roanoke Times' Mark Berman spoke with Thompson's father and got the details.
According to Thompson's father, Williams had eyed Trevor when Trevor was in prep school and Williams was coaching Marquette. Thompson's father said that at the time, Williams told Trevor's prep school coaches that Trevor was "soft."
"He lost the coach that brought him in [to Tech] ... and now he's got to start all over with a new set of coaches and learn a new system with a guy that doesn't like him? Not a good fit. So it's best for us to part," Ryan Thompson said.
Thompson's father said that when Williams met with the Tech players Saturday, Trevor's cellphone went off during the meeting.
So "he calls Trevor out basically in front of his teammates and says if you want a release, I'll give it to you now," Ryan Thompson said. "It was 50-50 going into that and that just basically nailed the coffin."
Three thoughts came to mind after reading this:
- Buzz isn't playing around.
- If getting chewed out in a meeting rattles you that much, you may in fact be soft.
- Thompson transferring would seem to be in the best interest of both parties. Trevor can find a better situation for himself—he can avoid building a relationship with his coach on a fractured foundation. Buzz has an extra scholarship to sign a kid better suited for his system.
Comments
Yup.
Best of luck to TT. sounds like he had some residual issues with Coach williams.
I think Vt MBB is about to go for a ride. Any fans or players who don't want to hop on are free to leave.
I for one, am all in. Let's see where this baby takes us...
I know where!
Your second point was my initial reaction. If someone called me soft I'd be pissed. I wouldn't want to leave, I'd want to prove that I'm not soft.
Also if I'm calling someone soft as a coach, I'd being saying you're soft but I'm going to make you tough which is no doubt what Buzz was saying to Thompson's prep coaches
I'm with you, that would just drive me to be beter
I think Buzz's offer to let him release was 2 things.
It was an indicator to this kid that calling him soft wasn't a motivational tool, it was serious and the offer was telling him he wasn't right for the program.
In other words, I think he's putting the word out that the lunch pail isn't just for VT football, it's VT Bball too.
The second message was, as pointed out below, the announcement there's a new sheriff.
New Sheriff in town...
Buzz really isn't playing around at all
New Buzz in town and if you don't like the Sound , then hit the road . I'm for the New Sound !!
Of all the players reacting to a coaching change I think that JVZ is the happiest. He is favoriting nearly every tweet about fans telling him that they are pumped about next season. I'm excited to see how Buzz develops him because if he can significantly improve his shooting I think he could be one of the best big men in the ACC.
If I was JVZ, I would be ecstatic, because he might be about to become an NBA draft pick by the time he is a senior. Buzz offensively is huge on his big men being the focus. In all but one year at Marquette, the three leading scorers were the Point Guard and the two starting forwards. He expects his Point guard to be able to penetrate into the lane and then distribute or score. He expects his big men to be able to handle the basketball with their backs to the basket and be able to create their own shot down low. This should mean next season that Devin, Joey and C.J. will play major roles unless Buzz brings in a couple of his own guys that change that dynamic.
This was also why I was surprised by Thompson leaving without knowing his boo-hoo sob story of being called soft by Buzz. Cant take getting chewed out for having your phone ring in a team meeting? Don't bring the phone to the team meeting then. My boss would have done the same thing Buzz did because its an unwritten rule in almost any setting these days that phones on silent or off when someone is speaking. Hell its like going to the movies. The Alamo Drafthouse theater has a policy that if someone complains about you and your phone twice, they throw you out, no refund. I am a big fan.
100% agreed on the phone.
I coach a travel basketball team and one of my pet peeve's was no phones at practice. At our first practice one of the players was texting or tweeting and I told the entire team: No phones in the gym. Zero tolerance. Turn off your phone and put it away. When you are with the team you will respect your coach and your teammates and don't waste our time. You can tweet and text after practice is over.
I respect his decision.
this is huge, and he'll be able to bring in a big man to replace thompson.
Another schollie for Buzz to play with:
We have 2 open scholarships now, I don't know if I really want Harris but it sounds like he could take one of those. It looks like Sandy Cohen has been recruited by Buzz and 247 was predicting him to Marquette so maybe Buzz can flip him too and get us another 6-5 shooting guard (you can never have too many shooters).
If he would have just put his phone on vibrate, Buzz probably wouldn't have heard it buzzing.
Seems like a little bit of an overkill to chew out a player during the initial meeting over a cell phone.
The first meeting with a new coach is an important meeting. His attention should have been on the meeting.
Well as I took it his phone just rang during the meeting. I don't think he was texting or anything. I guess we don't know.
Even so, if you're going in to an important meeting (and let's be honest, did any of the players think that the very first meeting with their new coach wasn't important) you should have your phone off or on silent. It's common courtesy, whether you're a basketball player, a student in a lecture, or a employee for some company. If your phone does go off, you shouldn't be surprised if you get called out for it, because it's rude.
It's clear that he didn't like Buzz from the start, because if he really got so upset by being called out for interrupting an important meeting, then he really is soft. That's life, sometimes you're going to make a mistake and get chewed out. If he really can't deal with that, I can't see how he can play competitive sports at all.
I was responding to your comment about his attention being on the meeting so I'm not sure what you're speaking about. You can have your phone on and still being paying attention to the meeting. Forgot to turn it off, made a mistake. We don't know the details so it's impossible to rip him for being soft.
I don't know what meetings you are attending that its ok to have your phone on and not on silent, but I have never been to one of those. People requesting a meeting that you agree to attend expect that they will have your undivided attention for the time they requested. By having your phone go off you disrupt the person speaking and possibly the entire agenda of the meeting by being a distraction. As a basketball coach in the NCAA, you are already limited to the amount of time you can spend with your players so to have to waste time waiting for someone to get their phone off would be frustrating at a minimum. My bosses in the past hammer people for these kind of distractions or failing to pay attention by having their phones/blackberries out.
There are better ways to deal with a phone going off during a meeting than telling a player he can transfer right now if he wants to.
bear in mind that those are the words of the kids father...take them with a grain of salt
or a 5 lb bag of it.
Not to be disrespectful, but are you in the working world right now? If so, next time your boss gets replaced and there is the introductory meeting, don't silence it and make sure someone calls you halfway through. If you don't get your ass reamed by the new guy in charge, I'll be shocked.
Show respect and silence your phone. TT already knew he and Buzz weren't on good terms and he went into the introductory meeting with an unsilenced phone. Its almost as if he was looking for a reason to leave and make Buzz look like the bad guy. It was a stupid mistake on his part, and he deserved to have his butt chewed out. If he's that soft a person that he's abandoning the program because his supervisor reamed him out for not silencing his phone before an introductory meeting, then we're better off this was the decision that was made.
Civilian/commercial space yes, you should expect a tone being set from the leadership immediately, and this would be an easy case study... now try something in a government installation like that -I think they're allowed to rape you on the spot for such an offense.
Regardless of the tone and level of intent from Buzz and in what context that interaction was meant, the kid wants to leave -the best of luck to him in his future endeavors. Buzz (regardless of how/what) did it right; weed 'em out sir, weed 'em out.
And somebody get a lunchpail under that bench.
If you're in a meeting with one of your superiors and your phone goes off, the person holding said meeting has every right to chew you out for not having the conscientiousness to silence your phone before coming in and sitting down.
That's not just sports. That's life.
agree 100%
Very much agree, like the tons that have already responded.
In the Navy (in my last squadron at least) if we're in our weekly wardroom meeting and a phone goes off they are usually fined $5. That goes towards the next wardroom outing to add to the food/drinks. It's amazing how a rule like that actually works pretty well. There may or may not be people who try to call phones just for fun...just saying
Overkill was my reaction as well, of course we don't know how it really went down at the meeting.
IMO:
Trevor's responsibility: Make sure the damn phone is turned off before the meeting starts.
Buzz's responsibility: Handle team business in team meeting and individual business in individual meetings
Gotta disagree here. I don't wish for the kid to go, but if his reaction to getting his ass chewed for his phone going off in a meeting is quitting then perhaps the issue is with himself. I played sports for years and years. If I quit the first time a coach yelled at me I wouldn't have played more than a month. it's not overkill for any coach to single out a kid and make an example out of him for the right reasons.
Had this been in class most professors would do the same.
It's just that these two have a past, one which left Trevor with a bad taste in his mouth that had him considering his options, and this was the door he was looking for when he heard Buzz was hired. Better it happen in the first meeting then after recruiting wraps up.
I agree that he shouldn't quit over getting yelled at. And I played sports as well and got yelled at plenty of times but I can't imagine I'd have a good first impression of a coach if the first time I met him he yelled at one of my teammates because his phone rang.
Really? I've been a part of some coaching changes. My high school soccer coach, for example, was changed mid-season and the first day some kid was slacking just running through the motions. Coach chewed his ass and sent him on some suicides for the rest of practice. The rest of us felt embarrassed for how the slacker was giving the wrong impression to the coach, not the other way around.
If I was on the basketball team and Trevor's phone rang I would've thought two things:
Prior to ass chewing: "Who the phuck?!"
After ass chewing: "Get it the phuck together Trevor! First phucking meeting and you got the coach yelling. Great first impression."
If anyone on the team thought differently than this when Trevor's phone rang then they are probably a bit "soft" as well and need some serious conditioning, aka, attitude adjustment.
Buzz was handling team business in that meeting and in that incident. That is obvious.
Sounds like TT never had a high opinion of Buzz and already disliked him before the hire and was already thinking transfer before the meeting.
I wouldn't put too much stock into the opinion of the kids father who has an agenda to make his son look good coming out of a decision to abandon the program. TT admittinglty already wanted out and now he's blaming Buzz for being mean on why he's leaving? Pffft whatever, thanks for the scholly back and best of luck wherever it is you go.
Here's my opinion: Your coach is god to you. You don't talk about him to his face or in public. If you're frustrated, sure you can talk about it one on one with another person, or address him in a mature way. Think about the trouble JJ had this season with discipline that led to an extended media circus. Buzz just cut that off at the start.
Tuff is tuff, but leadership demands that Buzz sit down with Thompson before the team meeting. Trevor showed the most potential on the team this year. He needed to add strength and learn from a good coach.
Why the heck should Buzz sit down with one player individually before the first meeting with the team? I am not sure I have heard of a worse idea. That would set up the idea that TT was something special and deserved special attention from the coach. The players should all the be same.
On top of which, Do you really think that Buzz had it on the front of his mind when having this meeting that: "Oh hey, there is that Thompson kid that I told some coaches I thought he was a little soft defensively several years ago at a camp, I bet he is going to hold a grudge for all that time and is looking for an excuse to leave." How many players do you think Buzz made that same kind of assessment of in the last two years? He most likely made the remark to suggest to Thompson's coaches that they work on his defensive basketball so that he would improve his game and his chance of playing Division I basketball.
If anything Thompson should have asked to speak to the coach before the meeting if he was harboring these issues so that his position was clear with Buzz going into their meeting. Water over the bridge at this point.
Buzz had a history with Thompson; therefore, it shows maturity, not macho testosterone. Obviously you have never been in a leadership position. Put the program ahead of ego.
I'm not exactly sure what "history" he had with him...he allegedly called him soft a couple years ago and TT didn't like that...I wouldn't classify that as "having history" with someone
I am just curious as to which poster you were referring to on this one and which party you think put their ego ahead of the program? Buzz? Thompson? Both?
He's saying coach williams put his ego ahead of the program by granting Thompsons transfer request.
"He needed to add strength and learn from a good coach." So it sounds like he was soft.
As a season ticket holder and frequent visitor to practice, I saw the potential of Thompson. I was a walk-on for Charlie Moir and have the best interest of the basketball program at heart.
Details are what they are, the result is that we are now looking thin in the post. Need to add another guy.
I think we need to remember a few basics. First, we've only heard TT's father's comments, as told him by his son. Second, Buzz will almost certainly not comment on specifics, other than to say TT elected to leave. There's nothing to be gained by a 'he said, i said...' banter when you are the coach. Secondly, TT obviously remembered the 'soft' comment from back when, probably well before the player meeting. Thirdly, accidents happen, but to not turn your phone to off/vibrate seems lackadaisical at the very least. Perhaps even self-centered, and certainly not the impression you want to give your new coach.
As for the Buzz comment about transferring? It could easily have been something like - 'Whose phone is that? Why didn't you cut it off? Guys, we've GOT to be serious! This is going to be a LOT of HARD work! If you aren't all in, if you can't even cut your phone off, feel free to transfer somewhere else! We're building something here! We've got to be about the team!...' It could have been any variation of that theme, and I find none of those variations to be overly harsh.
There have been whispers about TT actually answering his phone, which would have made me go bonkers if I were the coach. Even being lazy about cutting it off when it did ring would bug me. We also don't know any of the details on that, and we won't. Let's be fair to the (ex) player and the coach both, and not speculate TOO much.
What remains is this - Thompson decided to not play for Williams. He is the first, he might not be the last. That's fine. Williams is a challenging coach, and is successful. For VaTech to move into the top half of the ACC on a consistent basis, we need a hard-nosed coach and a hard-nosed team. Not everyone will fit that model. Thompson can go elsewhere, and hopefully succeed and graduate and be productive in life. Hopefully those that stay can do the same thing. This is a tiny blip. Clean slate, new program, no more talk about old coaches or old ADs. We've got new & shiny now, I'm stoked!
'the hell do you guys think Coach K or Roy Williams is gonna do if someone's phone goes off in a team meeting? This ain't tiddlywinks. Time to sack up and play ACC Basketball.
I was JUST about to post this. I seriously can't imagine any of the top coaches stopping his meeting to say, "it's OK, just take care of that real quick and we'll get back to work." No way. Not in basketball, not in the real world. These kids will learn quickly what is expected of them.
Well, K would wrinkle up his face, put a bulletin in front of his mouth and curse them out. Maybe throw a magic marker at them. Ole Roy would say something like 'Gosh dawg it son, why did your momma have to call you right now? Don't you know Coach Smith is real disappointed in you?...'
I don't think anyone has a problem with Buzz chewing a guy out for a cell phone going off.
But there seems to be a very strong "Thompson must be soft" narrative from a lot of people who have never even met the guy. I feel like there's an awful lot speculation necessary to reach that conclusion.
There are numerous people in this very thread who are acting like our coach is some sort of unreasonable monster because he granted a kids transfer request.
Potayto potahto, I guess.
I am a fan of this unreasonable monster if that's the case.
There are more people in agreement with Williams.
I agree with Williams because he's the coach AND, he's giving the kid his transfer instead of denying eligibility.
Bottom line, support the new coach.
Well, I feel like they are the overwhelming minority.
My point is, it is possible to support the new coach without questioning the character/toughness of a 19-year-old kid who has contributed exponentially more to our basketball program than just about everyone on this site.
It's just a hunch, but I think the comments in support of Buzz would be better recieved if they weren't accompanied by a knock on Thompson.
Sorry, Thompson is not a hokie anymore by choice. That's his choice and more power to him, but I personally could give two shakes about non-Hokies. This is a Hokie website, you're going to find that we are biased in favor of coach williams, a hokie, and against non-hokie basketball players. It's just the way it is.
And let's be real about his "contributions to the program" - he's a freshman who averaged 5 and 5 on a 9 win team. Maybe if his daddy didn't go crying to the media about what a meanie head the new coach was to him, people would be reacting a little differently.
But don't quit on your alleged team and school and take parting shots at the new coach and not expect people to shoot back, that's just not how life works.
To me, it feels like when we (or any school) get passed over by a good recruit and a faction of the fan base starts the whole "he sucks, we didn't want him anyways" routine. If he is leaving because he couldn't handle getting chewed out in a meeting, than yes, he needs to grow some thicker skin, but the reality is we know almost nothing about the factors that led to his decision. We have one second-hand account about one event, and that's it (and did his dad cry to the media, or did the media contact his dad?). Everything else is 100% speculation.
In terms of his "contributions to the program" I wasn't referring to his stat line, I was referring to the who-knows-how many of hours of practice time he's put in over the last year. And as frustrating as it was for us as fans to watch a 9-win season, it has to be even more so for the players who invest a ridiculous amount of time and energy into the program.
I realize he's not a Hokie anymore, and I don't expect anyone to take his side, but the least we could do is refrain from making character judgements based purely on speculation. I think he's earned that.
Except we didn't get "passed over"... He was a Hokie and is now going out of his way to NOT be a Hokie anymore because his feelings got hurt when the new coach came in.
I have zero sympathies to give. You don't just stop being a Hokie when the going gets tough. That crap is weak, and he deserves all the criticism he is getting. I don't care about the ifs and buts. He already admitted he was thinking transfer because it was Buzz and he let his phone go off during the meeting and, according to those that were supposedly there, answered the call. Buzz deservedly gave him hell for it and he put in paperwork to transfer.
Good luck to him in the future. Big picture, we're better off without him.
Agreed.
Prove it.
Prove it?
I would think his father crying to the media that his son is transferring because a coach yelled at him when his phone went off in an introductory meeting is plenty proof enough.
I'll admit that I have a tendancy to be over-apologetic when it comes to current and former players (*looks at Marcus Davis, makes fist, does double chest tap*) and I could be wrong, so this is the last comment I'll make about it.
There is obviously more to this than the phone incident, and we aren't privy to that information. I think it's in both parties best interest to part ways. I don't think it necessitates passing judgements of character on Thompson.
Maybe it is the dad that has a grudge against Buzz. I think any good coach would release someone who is not committed to the program.
He's not a hokie any more he hasn't "earned" anything from me. I'll treat him like I'd treat any player from any other team.
Again solely based on the information available; let's also make sure we are not making excuses for a behavior because we feel a kid is or may be valuable. As a new leader coming into an environment desperately in need of change in culture, I believe it is important to establish strong leadership immediately, and eliminate any personalities that might conflict with the new direction. Remember this is the first meeting and everyone is watching to see how the new coach will handle such challenges. He needs to be firm, and being that he is the only proven winner at this level (in the room), he is the alpha dog and the onus is on everyone else to comply.
Nice point - he is the only proven winner... he is the alpha dog - I think it's unrealistic to expect him to hug it out over something like this. I don't know of a coach in college sports that would not be irritated by that. Compound it with the fact this is the FIRST meeting, and the extra five seconds of attention to detail are not too much to ask.
There is just an inordinate amount of hand wringing about this, for some reason.
Regardless, if fans are bothered by this, they do NOT want to be at Buzz's first practice, much less his infamous 'Boot Camp' prior to the first practice. There will be shouting, and physical and emotional and psychological challenges to the players, and they will not like it. But they will adapt and grow because of it. Or they will leave.
If Thompson actually answered his phone when it rang instead of immediately shutting it off and apologizing to Coach Williams for having forgotten that it was on, then I have absolutely no problem at all with Coach Williams calling him out on it in front of the rest of the team. I don't know if this is what happened or not, but I have a hard time believing that Coach Williams would go off on a kid simply because his cell phone rang in the middle of a meeting ... unless, of course, he'd specifically told everyone to turn their phones off before the meeting started.
That was kind of my first thought when I read that his phone going off became the deciding factor. It's not uncommon to forget to silence your phone but if it goes off you immediately apologize, and you don't "chew out" a 19 year old, you tell him to turn it off and show in your face/tone that you're not pleased. If he answered it or Buzz had asked everyone to turn their phones off he had a right to chew him out. I think TT probably had an attitude when it went off because otherwise yelling at one of the players might have alienated the rest of the team which he obviously didn't.
To reiterate, the only public statements made were by Thompson's father, who relied on what his son told him. Third hand knowlege, with ZERO followup questions asked by Mark Berman of the Roanoke Times. Berman's article included no followup such as - 'did Trevor answer his phone? Cut it off & apologize? Cut it off & say nothing? Did he not think it necessary to cut off his phone? Did he forget? What exactly did Buzz say? Exactly?...'
Even the 'soft' comment is from two years or more ago, and was supposedly told to Thompson's father by someone else. One side of the story from someone who was rumored to be leaving before the meeting was even held.
Every single player for Buzz will be chewed out in front of the rest of the team at some point during practice this year. Every... single... player... Guaranteed. The weak ones? They can leave, or they can adapt.
Exactly, we don't know what happened but we know there was more than what we're hearing. In terms of getting chewed out, yeah it'll happen in practice and games and probably some meetings, my point was it would be a bit excessive for Buzz to go Bob Knight on TT if he left his phone on accidentally and apologized, especially in the first meeting. He may have tried to set the tone and showed his displeasure that the phone was on and TT didn't appreciate it, but it seems to me he was going to leave anyway whether this had happened or not.
I don't think it was excessive at all for Buzz to get on TT. And we know NOTHING about what Buzz actually said, thanks to the lack of followup by Mark Berman. Even if Buzz reamed him out for it, I don't find that excessive. It is EXTREMELY rude and self-centered for anyone to leave their cell phone on during a meeting and it is EXTREMELY easy to remember to cut it off prior. If one actually cares enough to do so, that is. Everyone knows that. 19 yr olds know it, 15 yr olds know it. It's not allowed during class. it's not allowed during games. It's not allowed during practice. It's not allowed during meetings. Who doesn't know that? Who cares so little they don't take five seconds to check? What is wrong with criticizing them for that?
I'm beginning to better understand why we went 9-22 this season...
It is not at all about Buzz being too harsh, it is about Thompson's father claiming Thompson was so emotionally fragile that having his coach criticize him in front of his teammates was justification for leaving VaTech. If this is so egregious of Buzz, then why has no other player come to Thompson's defense? Why do people automatically assume Buzz was even harsh about it?
I keep my phone on vibrate at all times because I never want it to go off in class or meetings or whatever. And I hate it when people don't turn their phone and it goes off during class. What I'm saying is there had to be something more than just a phone going off because that doesn't warrant a "chewing out" it just warrants a very displeased coach. I don't believe Buzz is at fault and if I'm siding with someone it would be Buzz. I was a coach for 5 years and may continue for a long time and I can't stand it when kids are talking to each other when I'm talking. It's one of my biggest rules and I make it clear on day one. I coached elementary school kids to high schoolers. By the time you're a D-1 athlete you should know that too. I can understand that Buzz would not be happy. My point is there's something more that we don't know and/or he was transferring anyway and blew what happened out of proportion.
The thing is - having your cell phone on in the first meeting with your new coach does indeed warrant a chewing out. Furthermore, if one's psyche is so fragile that the very first time you get chewed out in front of the team you decide to leave the team and the school, then the problem is with the fragile person, not with the coach who said something unpleasant.
The 'something more' is that Thompson did not want to play for Buzz, period. This was his convenient excuse. There was ZERO wrong with Buzz chewing him over that and nothing else. To reinforce - we do not know what was said. Buzz could have said - 'Either you're all in, or you can get out.' and Thompson could have pretended THAT broke his ego.
A coach chewing out a player for not having a cell on silent is perfectly acceptable. How is that even debatable? Thompson didn't want to play for Buzz, period.
This, exactly.
He already admitted he was seriously considering transferring because Buzz was the coach even before the meeting. He was looking for his excuse to bail on the school while being able to call himself the victim. At the end of the day, he's coming across as a weakling.
I am glad if he jumped on the guy for having his phone on during a meeting. Imagine you have a new manager come on at work, and the first meeting you have with him, your phone goes off? This is not going to make a good impression - and in a team situation it isn't about "YOU".
I am sure Coach K, or Roy Williams has yelled at an player for the same thing in their time. It just show that He was already wanting to bolt VT even before this coaching change.
But I am glad that some of the players are ecstatic about the change.. And top any player that *may* be reading this. Give the guy the benefit of the doubt, show respect it will take you a long way as a team and in life.
Guys, guys......it's not about the phone.
It's about setting the tone and managing a team.
I have nothing against TT, but I guarantee that Buzz knew all about each and every kid on the team before he made a decision. Whether his opinion of TT is fair or not, we can debate, but also remember Buzz is a proven winner and knows what is expected at VT.
TT just provided Buzz with an early, impactful and authoritative opportunity to start the change in culture.
And remember, Buzz made it TT's decision....and he made it.
Buzz is going to work, and that's what Whit/VT hired him for.
"Precisely."
The phone is a red herring. Coaches and players build a relationships through recruiting and it is clear this wasn't a positive relationship from either side. Thompson probably considered this the worst possible hire for him because of this negative relationship. Coupled with Thompson already thinking there were high majors interested in his transfer and this was a pretty easy result to project.
Exactly, there is prior history here. Thompson was obviously still butthurt over the "soft" comment in recruiting. He was probably showing his dissatisfaction with the hire in both his body languangr and facial expressions, shoot he may have even asked for the transfer prior to the meeting, only to have Coach Williams say "hear me out through the meeting and then decide."
Then when his phone went off he was like "fine if you want out, there's the door!" Remember, the only account we have and are likely to get of this is third hand from the transferring plays father. Let's keep things in perspective.
to me, this is the most important thing that has been said by anyone on here
Glad that Buzz has set the stage. Hopefully we can sway Sandy Cohen. Go Hokies!
Buzz calling Trevor out like that was hands down the best way to find out whether he is the right competitor to have on his team. And it's safe to say he is not. There's plenty of other potential Hokies out there to choose from!
If he truly is soft then he would fit in perfectly at good ole UVA
And regardless of whether or not Buzz's reaction was appropriate, or how TT actually responded when the phone rang: TT didn't have to leave the program. That was all on him.
Plus is eligibility ran out and he was drafted by the Ravens, but that is a whole 'nother story.
Great dialogue. Here is 2 cents. First of all we do not know Coach Williams definition of soft. What 6 ft. 10 in. high school senior, always been leading scorer and the man dropping in 3's instead of mixing it up down below with big boys if he ever played against any wouldn't be considered soft. That is probably an accurate 1st assessment. I personally would want to prove to him that the coach made an inaccurate assessment. The fact that daddy leaked out to the media, is the proof in the pudding.
The phone incident is a complete lack of respect for the new coach and it sounds to me like "What we have here is a failure to communicate" and that will be addressed in the future.
Kevin Durant, Larry Bird, Lamar Odom?
No one calls a player soft because of his skill set, or at the very least they shouldn't. There had to be something else going on with his game that Williams saw as a toughness liability.
Usually I determine a player is soft if he can't finish with contact, doesn't play tough defense, or doesn't go for rebounds. Could be some combination of that too.
I'd add in "the slightest bit of contact makes him crumple to the floor like he got shot."
So Lebron is who you're describing?
Only if he's also allowed to travel as many steps as he wants to.
#LebronCrabHop is a travel every time.
If I were TT's dad, I tell him, "you sit down with coach W and talk about the comments made during your recruitment, and work it out". If he does that, they likely work through it and have greater respect for each other... been there, done that many times in my working career and ended up with great relationships with folks I had issues with.
Now if he REALLY wants to play closer to home, fine- but to bolt because you got your feelings a little hurt 3 years ago makes me think he's just... soft
Unfortunately that isn't how a lot of this latest generation of Diva players were brought up. Its why we love the Fullers so much. Their parents didn't allow the Diva monstrosity to take hold of their kids. A lot of these other kids and their parents have it in their mind that their kid is the best ever and all along their playing career thus far, they have been the top of the heap. A coach comes along and challenges that notion with a dose of reality and both Diva and parent are outraged. Think Toddlers in Tiaras in basketball shorts. The way the media, the AAU programs, and some coaches treat "superstars" these days is the root of the problem. If all you heard all your life was that you were the best and one coach comes in and challenges it, than that coach must be an idiot or out to get you. Too much showboat and not enough mental development.
Beautifully worded.
"...Toddlers in Tiaras in basketball shorts"
lol, classic!!
I agree. A lot of these players in their High School, were on top of the world at the time.. and had a lot of "love", "appreciation" and probably a lot of things handed to them. Some of them come out good and know at this level, every guy was the "best" where they were at and equal, team etc.. Then some think they are the sh--t, and think that no one can challenge them... the latter do you don't want on a team unless you can break them of that.
Well said.
/realizes I will agree with almost any argument that uses the Fullers as a supporting example
/shrugs
/returns to building my altar to Mama Fuller
Does anyone know what type of phone it was? Was it an iPhone, Android, old school flip? I think it's really hard for everyone to be speculating without knowing ANYTHING about the offending item. Maybe the ringtone was LOLUVAs fight song?
So. Many. Questions.
The "offending item" was the kid that left it on for the meeting
I think this was written in /sarcastica
Nope....there is no blame on the part of the device, it is all about the lack of respect and irresponsibility of the kid and nothing more
Poor phone is getting a bad rap.
We just need to buy Buzz a bigger one of these for the team:
Trevor's phone wouldn't have had the chance to get in trouble if Buzz had this.
"Soft" would be if Buzz said his rule on phones was zero tolerance and that it meant you had to run srpints or something like that and TT decided he would rather transfer. This only helps Buzz establish himself as a tough and fair coach. If the truth is your son didn't really like the coach or you don't like the coach then just say so and move on. The phone is a red herring.
I know i'm probably the only one who believes this, but i dont like this as a start. It doesnt send out good vibes when on the first day that you have met the players you're calling someone out in front of his teammates. sure Trevor may have been soft and may have been leaning towards transfer, but still, i dont believe this sends good vibes.
You are probably correct in your belief. I would put it into context. The article was a third hand account of what happened in a closed team meeting. Seems like all the others on the team (that have expressed anything) have the opposite impression of the coach. Coach K, John Wooden, Bobby Knight, and countless other great coaches are all no-nonsense guys. Basketball is a team game and there is no room for prima-donnas or guys not willing to tow the line with the coach.
Actually I think it DOES send good vibes. Think about what Beamer does. When they go to a bowl game, he prints the bus route home on the cover of the team play book. No-nonsense. We have had "star" players on the football team sit out for minor infractions.
This send a message to the team to be a team. Sometimes people need to be called out in front of others. He is bolting because he is probably still ticked off that the guy that called him soft in prep-school is now his coach. He may have been smart, copped an attitude.. we don't know and may never know.
I do know for a fact the guys were down this season for losing so may games.. but i think this is a bolt of energy to the team that is going to make things much better, and maybe a little house cleaning is needed.
In these instances I try to ask WWBD (what would Bud do).
TT got off easy :=)
But still...in the first team meeting, eh idk maybe i'm just too weak lol
It's kind of a digital choice at this first, all-important meeting.
Who runs the show, the disrespectful kid that doesn't turn off the phone or the coach.
Very simple rule. If you can't follow that but the coach let's it slide, where exactly are the boundaries?
Coach is correct, you call out every infraction of the rules in order to prevent major infractions of the rules.
9-22.
A former NCAA athlete here, its common sense to leave/put your phone on vibrate when going to a team meeting. Especially when its with a brand new coach that just got hired, no Buzz wasn't looking to single this kid out. If I remember correctly the kids dad said oh he wants to transfer because Buzz called him "soft".. I'm sure Buzz was asked about his potential and he told the coaches the truth, which is not what Trevor "Tiara" Thompson wanted to hear. Lets quit when the going gets tough, heck he wouldn't even survive 1 day with Gentry or even Bud.
From a Roanoke.com story:
The story seems a little different that just what the father is saying:
Trevor Thompson had his phone out in the team meeting. I asked him to put it up, Williams said. The kid put it up and that was the end of it.
I flew to New York immediately after the team meeting; his dad had left me a message. I called him back; he said [Trevor] wanted his release.
If you dont want to stay, Im happy for you to go.
I started watching the Ohio State vs Michigan State game that's on CBS right now at halftime... Thompson has been an absolute force around the rim. I've heard the commentators say his name easily a dozen times from the time I turned on the game. I wish things had worked out with him in Blacksburg. It would be nice to have an experienced "true" big man right now.
We'll never know for certain, but there are reasons why he didn't stick around with Buzz and we've been improving without him. I'm glad he landed at a good program where he's being productive.
Yeah, his beef with Buzz goes all the way back to high school. He was gone the second Buzz was hired.
Sigh... I just was wondering what could have been for the team now if Thompson was an OKG
Doesn't surprise me, the dude is really physically talented. On the other hand, I'm stunned at how little of impact Emelogu has had at SMU. I thought that dude was going to be a star
His first season there he completely lost his shooting touch, going from 39% at Tech to 27% his first season at SMU, then he missed all of last year with a knee injury that drove him even further down the depth chart. This season he is shooting better but just isn't getting the minutes with some new guys entrenched above him.