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Buzz Williams Says Jalen Hudson is the Hokies’ Most Talented Player

By Tim Thomas

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Dec 22, 2014; Blacksburg, VA, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies head coach Buzz Williams instructs his players during the game against the Virginia Military Keydets at Cassell Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Michael Shroyer-USA TODAY Sports

The Virginia Tech Hokies won their third straight game against the VMI Keydets 87-74 with a few players having some career highs including Jalen Hudson who had 12 points in this game. Buzz Williams did a great job of preparing the Hokies for the unique challenge of playing a VMI team that has a playing style that is different from any other team in the country.

Williams seemed to be frustrated with the way the Hokies played in some parts of the second half, but he seemed to be happy about the Hokies’ overall performance especially with the way they played in the first half.

After the game, Williams talked to ESPN3’s Mack McCarthy and had a very interesting comment.

That is definitely a surprising statement though Williams did not say that Hudson was the best player for the Hokies. There is a difference between the most talented player and the best player, but that is still major praise for Hudson after what was his best game of the 2014-2015 season.

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You would expect that most talented player to be Justin Bibbs who has been very effective as a freshman averaging 12.6 points per game which leads the Hokies currently. However, Williams sees a lot of potential in Hudson who has shown that he can be used as a point guard if Devin Wilson is not on the floor.

Jalen Hudson still seems to be a fairly raw player but Buzz Williams has done a very good job of developing the young shooting guard. Hudson still has some work to do from beyond the arc as most of his points come right around the rim, and Hudson has only made 15.4% of his three-point shots this season.

Hudson showed in this past game how tough of a defender and transition scorer he can be when he is playing at a very high energy level. Hudson is averaging 0.6 blocks and 0.7 steals in 15.9 minutes per game which is fairly good for a shooting guard.

Dec 22, 2014; Blacksburg, VA, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies guard Jalen Hudson (23) dunks the ball against the Virginia Military Keydets in the first half at Cassell Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Michael Shroyer-USA TODAY Sports

Hudson does look like a player with a very bright future, and a lot of that is due to how athletic Hudson is as shown by the blocks, and his ability to still make some difficult layups while being fouled.

However, it is surprising that Buzz Williams would make a comment like this, but this might also be something that he wants Hudson to hear to make sure that the freshman guard is pushing himself as much as possible in every game and practice.

Williams is proving to be a very honest coach, and this is just the latest example of that. This hasn’t seemed to be an issue with his players, and actually probably builds up the players’ trust in Williams telling them the truth, and not sugar coating anything.

One thing is certain, Jalen Hudson has a very bright future in Blacksburg and Buzz Williams knows it.

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