Projected Starters:
Malcolm Delaney, PG – Delaney is the heart and soul of our team this year, and the weight is on his shoulders to get us over the hump and into the tournament. Last year he was the ACC’s leading scorer averaging 20.2 ppg. He also averaged 3.7 rpg, 4.5 apg, and 1.2 steals per game. More than anything though, he is a master at driving and getting to the free throw line where he was 3rd in the ACC in free throw percentage. He was unanimously voted 1st team All-ACC (first ever at VT, yeah I know we’ve only been in the ACC 6 years) and is going into this season on the John Wooden Award Preseason Watchlist for best player in the country. All eyes are on Delaney this year as we can only go as far as he takes us.
Dorenzo Hudson, SG – Hudson was the most improved player on the team last season and maybe even in the ACC. He increased his offensive output from 4.6 to 15.2 (10th best in the ACC) last season and took over games when Delaney was injured. He has always been a lock down defender, but now he has become a great scorer by beating people on the dribble and slashing to the basket. And as a sign for things to come, Hudson averaged 20.2 ppg in post-season play last year.
Terell Bell, SF – Bell is the best defender on the team with his 6’6 frame and longer wingspan. He rebounds well for his position pulling down 6.1 rpg and had the 2nd most blocks on the team. He also greatly improved his shooting last season and had the best 3pt percentage on the team at 0.361. This enables the Hokies to spread the floor and give Delaney, Hudson, and Allen room to drive.
Jeff Allen, PF – Allen has always been up and down for the Hokies, but when he’s up, he’s really hard to stop. He’s 6’7, 230 but has great feet quickness and the hands of a guard. This makes him a matchup problem with anyone. Offensively he can beat bigger men to the rim on the dribble, and defensively he is all over the place. He is the active leader in the ACC in rebounds, steals, and blocked shots! The problem with Allen has always been foul trouble though, and this could be an especially big problem this year with our very limited front court…
Victor Davila, PF – Davila was a highly rated recruit, but has yet to live up to the hype. He is the Hokies most gifted offensive player in the front court with a lethal hook shot, but goes cold for several weeks at a time. And his defense needs more work than his offense. He needs to be more physical, especially crashing the boards. He was 3rd on the team in blocks, but overall needs to pick it up defensively.
Bench:
Erik Green, PG – Delaney and Hudson played more minutes than just about anyone in the country last year, and that’s mostly because Green and Boggs left a bit to be desired while trying to give them a rest. Green has the talent and has had a great offseason, so there is a good chance we see more of him this year. Last year, his shot was off and he was too timid, but he’s put in the work on the court and in the weight this offseason and is coming back bigger and more confident.
Ben Boggs, G – Boggs is undersized and not a true point guard. He can knock down and open 3, but rarely creates for himself or teammates. His primary role will be to just give the starters a rest.
Cadarian Raines, PF – Oh my… In my opinion, Raines is the key to our season this year. As I hinted earlier, we really have no depth in the front court this season. Allen, Davilla, and Raines are it. Raines didn’t play too many minutes last season because of a foot injury, but his size is needed this season. The good news is that Raines might be more of a complimentary player to Allen with how physicality. He plays bigger than he is, which is already 6’9, he’s a great rebounder and blocker, and he is an energy guy that will go all out all the time. But he did just have his 2nd foot surgery in just over a year this summer and is still hobbling around…
Manny Atkins, G/F – Much like Bell, Atkins is a great defender with a long wingspan. He didn’t play too much last season, but did show signs of improvement specifically in his ball handling. Expect Atkins, Eddie, and Bell to get some major minutes at PF if Allen gets in foul trouble, Raines has health issues, or Davila has a quiet game. Yeah, basically expect the Hokies to play small ball a lot this season like when we had a 140 lb Deron playing as a "power" forward…
Still. he was my favorite power forward...
Jarell Eddie, SF – I’m so giddy about our recruiting the last two seasons. Eddie might be the best recruit VT has ever landed, well until the next class coming in next year! In my biased opinion, Eddie has a chance at the ACC Freshman of the Year. At 6’7, 210 he has the size and strength to play either forward position and rebounds the position well. He also can hit open 3’s, has decent rang on his jumper, and is great at driving to the basket and going up strong or drawing contact. He will be a matchup problem for nearly anyone he faces. I expect he’ll make an instant impact and play a lot of minutes for us this season.
Tyrone Garland, G – Garland is another super freshman coming in. He’s a little rawer than Eddie, but like Delaney he’s good at slashing to the basket. He’s not a true PG or SG as he mostly creates for himself and lacks a consistent outside shot, but he has the skills that should get him on the court this season and set him up for a good career at Tech.
IR:
JT Thompson, F – Thompson was a PF trapped in a SF’s body. But he played much bigger than his 6’6 frame. Unfortunately, he tore his ACL in a pick-up game and is out for the season. We could have really used him off the bench at PF. He was 4th on the team in points last season and 3rd in rebounds.
Allen Chaney, PF – Poor Chaney was supposed to make an instant impact after transferring from Florida 2 years ago, but since then he’s had rotten luck. Chaney is an athletic 6’9 forward that is a great rebounder and has good perimeter skills for the position. He missed all of last season due to a shoulder injury and resulting surgery, now he’s having a much scarier problem. He fainted in practice in April and had to receive mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. He was diagnosed with dehydration and cleared for light shooting drills soon after. But he continued getting dizzy and having fainting spells in light workouts unless he chugged 4 Red Bulls beforehand (from his own experience). Because of this they decided to look at his heart where they learned that he had vital inflammation of the heart. The virus requires 6-18 months to run its course while resting and having little to no physical exertion. So odds are, he’ll miss the entire season. Even if his heart recovers in time, he’ll be out of basketball shape to make any impact. The one bright spot is that NBA vet, Juwan Howard, also suffered from this virus and called Chaney to encourage him. But you can’t help but feeling terrible for this kid.
Outlook:
On that uplifting note let’s get into the Hokies outlook for this season… Last season we finished 25-9 overall and 10-6 in the ACC (tied for 3rd). And again we were on the outside looking in during March Madness. Since VT joined the ACC in 2004, only 4 times has a team gone .500 or better in ACC play and not made the tournament. Three of those times were VT... But this season there are no excuses. We are ranked #23 preseason. We were voted to finish 2nd in the ACC by the ACC. And we have one of the best players in the country. Also, our strength of schedule is way up this year (which was important last season, but not as important a few seasons before that…).
As stated there is a glaring weakness in the front court. We only have 3 true front court players in Allen, Davila, and Raines. And only one of those has truly proven himself. Davila or Raines will really need to step up in order for the Hokies to live up to the hype. And not only that, but all three have to stay out of foul trouble and stay healthy (which is not exactly any of their strong points).
But for where we lack front court size and depth, we more than make up for in back court speed and athleticism. There will be few teams that will be able to defend Delaney, Hudson, and Eddie. Plus, Hudson, Bell, Atkins, and Eddie will be tough defensive matchups for anyone. The back court should be an advantage for us in every game aside from possibly Duke and Kansas St.
Looking at the schedule there are some tough tests. I guess Greenberg is making sure we’re not in the same position on the bubble this season as last due to strength of schedule. The challenges start on the road against Kansas State on Nov 16. For Kansas State, Jacob Pullen is one of the best guards in the nation at putting the ball in the basket, plus you pair him with a front court consisting of Jamar Samuels, Curtis Kelley, and FIU transfer, Freddy Asprilla, and Kansas State is tough to defend. Then the Hokies will travel to Anaheim for the 76 Classic over Thanksgiving weekend to play Cal State Northridge, then DePaul or Oklahoma State if they win. If they win the first two games, they’ll probably play Murray State in the finals. And Murray State’s senior guard duo of B.J. Jenkins Isacc Miles is one of the best in the country. The Hokies will also travel to the Bahamas to play in the Battle at Atlantis against Mississippi State on Dec 18. Mississippi State’s Renardo Sidney, Ravern Johnson, and Dee Bost (if he’s eligible) present real matchup problems for an undersized Hokies team. Then there is all of the ACC to contend with. Duke is loaded in the back court with Nolan Smith, Kyrie Irving, Kyle Singler, Seth Curry, and Andre Dawkins. I’m not terribly worried about the Plumlee filled back court, but their depth at the guard position is just scary. Other tough matchups include big men Jordan Williams from Maryland and Tracy Smith at NCST along with a great group of freshmen. Plus, there’s no telling how good Harrison Barnes is going to be for UNC. That said, it is a down year in the ACC, so VT should be able to win 10 or more.
I predict tough losses to KSU, someone in the 76 Classic (OKST or Murray St probably), possibly Mississippi State, then a few losses scattered throughout the ACC. At the end of the year, I expect the Hokies to be around 23-6 going into the ACC tournament (as a #2 or 3 seed). But it’s going to be tough with our lack of depth in the front court.
Recruiting:
I’m already over 2000 words going into this part, so I’ll try and wrap this section up in as few words as I can, but I’m just so excited about how well Greenberg and company have recruited the last two years. I’ve already told you about Jarell Eddie and Tyrone Garland from last year’s class and how excited I am about them both (especially Eddie). Well check out next year’s class, which is still in the works:
Dorian Finney-Smith, SF – According to ESPN, Finney-Smith is the 4th best SF prospect in the country and 15th best overall. He is the best recruit Virginia Tech has ever gotten (an accolade held by Jarell Eddie for about a year). At 6’7 he can play as a shooting guard or either forward position. He can get to the rim off the dribble, can hit open shots, has great vision and can find teammates for easy buckets, and is very effective on the offensive glass. He needs to build some more strength and develop more of a low post game and become a better defensive rebounder, but there are very few holes in his game.
Marquis Rankin, PG – Ranked 21st in the nation at PG, Rankin is a quick, athletic PG that is great in transition and on defense. He also has a high basketball IQ and moves well with or without the ball. He’s had a few injury problems in the past and isn’t much of a shooter, but he’s more of a true PG than Tyrone Garland. If he can stay healthy he could be a major contributor and start for 4 years at Tech.
C.J. Barksdale, PF – Another 6’7 athletic offensive monster. Barksdale is the 15th ranked PF in the country. He can knock down mid range jumpers and attack the basket. Also, he’s a force on the offensive glass. Needs to add strength to hold down the post on defense and needs to work on his technique, but the athleticism and skill set is a matchup problem for any low post defender.
Robert Brown, SG – Brown is a streaky shooter, but has great shooting and passing touch as well as body control. He can also drive to the lane and finish with both hands and has a knack for drawing fouls. He is also an athletic and long armed defender and was ranked 39th in the country and SG.
And who’s considering Tech that would put this class over the edge?
Adjehi Baru, C – Baru is the 5th ranked C on ESPN’s rankings and #47 overall. Baru is from the Ivory Coast but moved to Virginia in high school. He’s a ferocious defender that brings a lot of energy on the court. He’s a great rebounder and help side shot blocker. He’s also coordinated for his size making him a good passer and offensive player. Like most kids coming up he needs to add strength to play in the low post at the college level, but he could make an immediate impact.
It would be a phenomenal pull to add Baru to this class which already ranks 10th in the nation (higher than we have been ranked in football recruiting since Vick). I mean when was the last time we’ve had this much to be excited about enter the season? Not since ’94-’95 coming off a NIT championship and returning all of our starters. Except no one cared about basketball then. But now we have become a basketball school thanks to JMU. Also, I've read that the four of these guys are already calling each other and talking about how they plan on coming to VT to win a national title. That's the kind of stuff I want to read about my recruiting class!
It’ll be a great season, and I’m very excited about it. You know if Allen can stay out of foul trouble and Raines can stay healthy. If not, I’ve read a rumor that a couple football players might come out for the team in a low post enforcer style like Jeff King. The names I’m hearing: Marcus Davis and Prince Parker. But let’s hope it doesn’t come down to that!
Here’s to your health!
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