It's way too early to think about next year's college basketball top-25, considering UNC's assassinated body is still warm.
BUT:
NBC Sports' Rob Dauster threw the Hokies on the end of his list.
When he lists why, he references this article he wrote after Tech's loss to Miami in the ACC Tournament.
It seems like expectations for the program are rising outside of Blacksburg as well.
Forums:
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Comments
USA Today has us in their top 25 as well.
Fantastic read.
Similarly, Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports has us in his way to early top 25 as well. HYPE TRAIN!
On a separate note, UNCheats lost! Priceless!
When I read the title I thought this was going to be some type of reference to Seth Greenberg's last season at Tech when he went 16-17.
This method sounds familiar....can't put my finger on it. It's really going to get after me til I figure it out
If you told me at this time last year, coming off a 2 win ACC campaign and seeing the kind of talent we had coming into Blacksburg for football that, barring a lightning quick start to the football season, we're most likely going to be ranked in men's basketball before football, I would have told you that you were insane.
Well... there's a pretty good chance we open the basketball season ranked. So yeah...
I have to say, what shocks me isn't that VT is at the bottom end of the top 25....it's that UVA is in the top 10.
I know they add Nichols, who will be their best player and maybe All-ACC worthy and return Perrantes. Great recruiting class coming in. But you don't lose Brogdon, Gill and Tobey and not see a bigger dropoff than this. And I'm rather unimpressed with the returning wing players in Shayok, Thompson, Hall and Wilkens.
If I was ranking the ACC next year, I would go with tiers:
National Title Contenders: Duke, UNC
Contenders for Top 25, top 5 Seed in NCAA: Louisville, VT, UVA, SU, FSU, Miami
Bubble Teams: Pitt, ND, Clemson
Bad Teams: NCSU, BC, GT, Wake
There is no guarantee that Perrantes stays. He will probably declare for the draft to see where he grades out and then make a decision since they changed everything this year to allow for players to get a best shot evaluation from the NBA before having to decide whether to return or not. Hell, the entire Kentucky roster is declaring just to see what the process is like.
Let's be honest, the entire Kentucky roster is declaring because if you declare you get to work with your coaches for 12 hours per week during the offseason. Every coach in the country should be taking advantage of that loophole like Calipari is.
Calipari is the bill belichick of NCAA.
Not breaking any rules, but pushing em as far as they'll go
Maybe it's just me, but I thought Shayok looked really good through the ACC and NCAA Tournaments. I think he's a really good player.
He's a really good defensive player, but his offensive skills aren't as good as Bibbs, Hudson, Hill.
Shayok is a poor man's Chris Clarke (he's also 2" shorter and plays more G than F on the Wing).
Maybe I'm a little biased, but I've never really been that impressed with Perrantes. I mean sure, he's a pure point guard and a decent distributor, but offensively he's one-dimensional and I definitely don't see him lasting a long time at the next level. Hoos are gonna be missing Brogdon and Gill big time, they've carried a lot heavier of the load than Perrantes has over the years IMO.
Perrantes has a place in the NBA, but it's a small niche. He'd be a perfect complement for a high usage 2 guard or wing (i.e. James Harden) - you need a PG who's unselfish, a good spot up 3-point shooter and someone who is a willing defender? Perrantes is your guy.
Now, I have questions about whether he has the athleticism to guard PGs in the NBA, but there are roles for him in the league.
Up until this year I would talk to anyone who would listen about how overrated I thought he was. This year I felt he stepped his game up. Some of that may have been due to defenses concentrating on Brogdan and leaving him open, but he still impressed me more than before. Will be interesting to see how he reacts to being the man next year.
I am not saying I am impressed with Perrantes but there is a role for him at the next level. If you had asked me back in 2001 if Steve Blake coming out of Maryland had a shot at a long career in the NBA I would have told you you were crazy, but here we are 15 years later and Blake is still pulling down a paycheck. Perrantes falls into that kind of category. Blake has been with 10 teams in 15 years and only averaged in double figures in one season with Portland, but teams need that step back three and the breather for their top point guard. The key for Perrantes will be being able to do the one other thing that has kept Blake on the floor. Blake has managed to average 4 assists per game over a career almost exclusively as a backup.
This is why you're the hoops wiz
Sometimes I hate when we start to get hyped like this. Because then entitlement creeps in. I like the overlooked pissed off kids who fight to be relevant.
So hope Buzz keeps these kids humble, though I'm sure he will. Always chuckled during his game end discussions, he definitely doesn't boost any egos.
Excitement in the fanbase also creeps in which can lead to better attendance at games which provides motivation for the players. You can't be relevant if you're overlooked.
Not sure where it is, but I remember seeing a locker room video of Buzz giving his guys the analogy of an unknown fighter working his tail off and taking down a highly respected opponent. The temptation is to relax and think you have made it, but he said the fight only intensifies as the target on your back grows more and more. Not sure if I remembered the speech correctly or not, but I know the principle of what he was trying to say.
I know exactly what you are saying, but I also know Buzz was preaching this to his players when they were unknown and not relevant. The hope is that when they start to be relevant, they fight all the more to stay relevant and keep progressing as the fighting "has just begun".
"I think when you have a breakthrough, you realize the battle only intensifies." Buzz Williams
Boom. Thanks!
It is a honor for the team to be thought of so highly. With that comes the bulls eye on the back of the uniform.
I think that won't come until 2017-18
Yeah, when we're defending ACC and National Champs.
Wait... is this a basketball or a football thread? You need to be more specific.
No, no he doesn't.
satchel is transferring, dont have enough legs to make a new post
Does he expect Buzz to be leaving?
I doubt it. Kids transfer all the time for a large number of reasons. Satchel probably wasn't happy with his playing time and didn't see more coming in the future so he decided he could further his career better elsewhere.
Yeah because a guy who averaged 6.2 minutes per game would transfer because he thinks his coach is leaving. I hope you meant to put a s/ on your post because where do you expect for Buzz to leave to? Georgia Tech? Valparaiso?
Did you somehow take personal offense to my question?
Not personal offense. Just irritation. Your question doesn't make sense. I'm all for substantiated rumors and theories, but your question isn't that. This site has been over the Buzz leaving issue which has pretty much been put to bed for this year and of all players leaving, Pierce is the least likely to signal Buzz's departure.
Pierce was released from his NLI at Marquette to follow Buzz to VT, so it's certainly not unprecedented.
What was the concrete proof that I missed about him staying, and who would be the most likely to signal his departure?
Now THAT is how you make a graceful exit!
Best of luck Satch!
SportsOnEarth has us in their early Top 25, as well.
I'm glad that the team is getting deserved attention, but I do wonder how things will go next year now that this team is a known entity.
Now let me be clear - while I get the impression that the team won't let expectations get in the way of what they want to accomplish, it's an entirely different animal when people start intensely gameplanning for you.
The big question mark I see is interior defense - with Henry graduating and Pierce transferring, we'll need a big leap from Blackshear and a healthy Hamilton to get this team to the next level. And who knows what kind of production you can expect from Khadim Sy, but I have a feeling Buzz isn't expecting a huge contribution from him.
Regardless, it will be exciting to watch this team next year as they have a great foundation in place.
I Love Buzz Williams. He is a GREAT man. Me saying that has nothing to do with VT Basketball performance. Buzz Williams is a life coach. Just reading his twitter page is life changing. If he ever left VT, I would still listen to what he say where ever he is at because it could make me a better person, and that is from a great distance away. #GETBETTER