Transfer Thread - April 2019...

[billyjack]

April 2019...

Wabissa Bede -
Virginia Tech.
Needs to sit a year.

[GoldenWarrior11]

And I thought Buzz left Marquette in left shape. Boy, when he leaves, the whole house is burning to the ground. Between Robinson, Outlaw and Hill graduating, Alexander-Walker going pro, Blackshear grad transferring and now Clark and Bede leaving, their roster will be completely depleted for the next several seasons. This is another reason why Willard, Wojo, or whomever would be crazy to take Tech's money and waste several recruiting cycles just to get back to the middle of the ACC. Rough.

[billyjack]

And I thought Buzz left Marquette in left shape. Boy, when he leaves, the whole house is burning to the ground. Between Robinson, Outlaw and Hill graduating, Alexander-Walker going pro, Blackshear grad transferring and now Clark and Bede leaving, their roster will be completely depleted for the next several seasons. This is another reason why Willard, Wojo, or whomever would be crazy to take Tech's money and waste several recruiting cycles just to get back to the middle of the ACC. Rough.

Right, the team is going to suck.

[H.U.S.T.L.E.]

And I thought Buzz left Marquette in left shape. Boy, when he leaves, the whole house is burning to the ground. Between Robinson, Outlaw and Hill graduating, Alexander-Walker going pro, Blackshear grad transferring and now Clark and Bede leaving, their roster will be completely depleted for the next several seasons. This is another reason why Willard, Wojo, or whomever would be crazy to take Tech's money and waste several recruiting cycles just to get back to the middle of the ACC. Rough.

Clarke wasn’t going to be able to return anyway from what I’ve heard.

As far as Bede goes, there’s still a chance he could return after the new coach is hired. And while people assume Blackshear might grad transfer, there’s been no indication that’s happening yet.

Yeah, there’s going to be a lot of turnover but I expect whoever takes the job will aggressively pursue the grad transfer market. The other thing going for us at VT is that the ACC will probably be filled with fewer top end teams next year. Duke will obviously reload, but UNC is taking a definite step back after losing 3 seniors and potentially 2 one and dones, and FSU loses at least 5 guys who played heavy minutes. Louisville will probably rise as Mack continues to build that program and UVA could still return a decent amount as well. But there’s going to be a lot of turnover on the whole in the ACC so it’s not just going to affect VT.

[GoldenWarrior11]

The drawback for VT is that they truly caught lightning in a bottle with Buzz Williams. While they have clearly invested more in recent years, it simply cannot erase years of subpar performances. Him going from a school like Marquette to a school like Virginia Tech was unparalleled (but his reasons for the move should be common knowledge at this point). VT had zero history and/or tradition in men’s basketball. It had been a traditional cellar dweller in the ACC and a football first school. With what Buzz left to the program (Sweet 16, greatest season in decades - but also a depleted roster with likely all the recruits coming with him to A&M), the new coach is looking at a long term rebuild. Historically, continuing with that level of success would be untraditional to say the least.

UNC, Duke, Virginia, Louisville and Syracuse are not going anywhere. Florida State May take a step back, but programs like Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Miami and NC State will continue to improve. I think the only other program that might be trending down currently is Georgia Tech.

For a proven, successful, major head coach, in my mind, there is a ton of risk going to a place like VT. Buzz took a significant gamble going there, but not only did he get everything he wanted, but he won as an underdog as well. That’s why I never thought Willard was a serious candidate there. There are/will be better options for him in the future.

[H.U.S.T.L.E.]

It had been a traditional cellar dweller in the ACC and a football first school. With what Buzz left to the program (Sweet 16, greatest season in decades - but also a depleted roster with likely all the recruits coming with him to A&M), the new coach is looking at a long term rebuild. Historically, continuing with that level of success would be untraditional to say the least.

You are correct in saying that football has always driven the bus at VT. And yes, there will be some type of rebuild but depending on the hire. But if the new coach is able to retain guys like Bede and Blackshear, there’s at least a solid foundation to work with.

Where I will contest you is in your assertion that VT is a traditional cellar dweller in the ACC - this is untrue. Ever since our entry into the ACC (which coincided with Seth Greenberg’s second season in charge), we’ve mostly been a “middle class” team in the conference. Greenberg had two really bad ACC seasons - one early in his tenure and his last one. Then, the way our former AD handled Greenberg’s firing and subsequent hiring of James Johnson set our program back for a few seasons. Those two years and Buzz’s first were certainly cellar-dwelling, but that wasn’t the norm for the first part of our ACC tenure.

Sure, there isn’t a lengthy tradition of basketball excellence at VT, but it’s pretty clear that we have been a respectable program for the majority of the last 15 years. It’s also pretty clear that the athletic department is serious about supporting the program at a high level now as opposed to even 10 years ago. A lot has changed since our days in the old Big East.