Virginia Tech Basketball: The Role of Seth Allen

Mar 2, 2014; Clemson, SC, USA; Maryland Terrapins guard Seth Allen (4) drives to the basket during the first half against the Clemson Tigers at J.C. Littlejohn Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports

Basketball season is almost here with the Virginia Tech Hokies kicking off their 2014-2015 season on Friday night against the Liberty Flames at Cassell Coliseum. There is tons of excitement around the program mainly due to the hiring of Buzz Williams last spring to replace James Johnson and the recruiting class he was able to put together.

The Hokies also had some success on the transfer market which included the addition of former Maryland point guard Seth Allen. Allen will not be elligible to play for the Hokies this season but that doesn’t mean that he won’t be able to make an impact on the performance of Virginia Tech in ways that aren’t easily realized.

Allen was very productive at Maryland and seemed to be becoming one of the best point guards in the ACC after averaging 13.4 points, 3.0 assists, 2.0 rebounds, and 0.9 steals last season. On top of that, Allen also shot 38% from beyond the arc and 74.5% from the free throw line.

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Allen is a very talented point guard and can impact the Hokies by being a very valuable player in practice pushing his teammates and challenging them by going against them in practice. Allen will go against All-ACC Freshman Devin Wilson and these two talented point guards should only get better by consistently battling each other in practice.

A great example of this is at Iowa State where they have regularly brought in transfers who have been ineligible for a season but were able to push their teammates by going against them in pracitce. Now, Iowa State has built a strong team with a mix of transfers and players that Fred Hoiberg recruited to Ames.

Seth Allen will have a big impact on the Hokies this season by pushing Devin Wilson to get better every single day with Wilson also pushing Allen to get better. The Hokies are very fortunate to have two talented point guards on their roster even if only one of them is eligible to play this season.