Virginia Tech Friday News Whiparound

This is a new column I’m going to try to keep up with every week to give you faithful and loyal readers a recap of the major news and notes of the week. I’ll also try to give you some insider details as they come across regarding Virginia Tech athletics. With that out of the way, let’s begin.

Virginia Tech basketball season ends 

As I wrote yesterday, the Virginia Tech basketball season ended with a disappointing loss in the first round of the ACC Tournament. It’s time to forget this past season and look forward to next year. The questions that need to be answered are:

• Is C.J. Barksdale going to come back or is he going to transfer? This has been a question that Virginia Tech has been wondering all season. Mid-season Barksdale actually went to head coach James Johnson and told Johnson that he wanted to transfer at the end of the season. Moreover, Barksdale actually quit the team for a couple of days. He eventually returned saying he wanted to finish out the season. Since that time Barksdale has seen some major improvements on the court. I’ve also been told that Barksdale is reconsidering his plans to transfer. This is far from a guarantee that Barksdale returns next season, but the situation is certainly more encouraging than it was earlier in the year.
• Who will fill the scoring role that Erick Green left? Here’s where I’ll give you an insider scoop on Adam Smith, the transfer from UNC-Wilmington that the Hokies acquired but could not play this season due to NCAA transfer rules. Throughout the season the team records shooting numbers for the players in practice. Smith has had a really high (use your imagination on really high here) shooting average on “the gun” (a device that records shooting numbers and returns balls to players) throughout practice this season. I’ve been told that these numbers usually translate to about 20-25% higher than the in-game numbers. He has been playing on the scout team in practice, meaning he has been matched up against Robert Brown and Erick Green in practice. He’s been getting his against these players, and has some ridiculous ups in the process (apparently was recorded as having a 44 inch vertical). He needs to work on his defense and ballhandling, especially when trying to drive the lane. I look forward to seeing Smith starting at shooting guard for the Hokies next season. He could very well be the focal point of this team.