Mike Young secures Virginia Tech's biggest win during an offseason full of roster turnover

When it comes to retention for the Virginia Tech men's basketball team during the Transfer Portal cycle, head coach Mike Young clearly targeted who he wanted to keep for next season.

He got retention from the three players he needed to, forward Amani Hansberry, guard Ben Hammond, and forward Tyler Johnson. Yes, he did lose some players that would have been huge to keep for at least another season in Blacksburg, but building around those three players is the three to keep.

The only question will be whether all three can stay healthy, as Johnson was lost for a good part of the past season with an injury, and Hammond had a huge breakout season. As far as Hansberry goes, he was a portal cycle addition one year ago. A big reason why the Hokies were able to land him was because of assistant coach Chester Frazier, as he followed him to Virginia Tech from West Virginia. Now, like Hansberry, Frazier is sticking around with Young.

Virginia Tech announces Chester Frazier is returning with a new contract

On Wednesday, it was announced that Frazier got a one-year contract extension that will keep him in Blacksburg through the 2026-27 season. Truthfully, he should be getting a longer contract and be the coach in waiting for when Young decides to hang it up.

There is no denying the value Frazier has for the Hokies in terms of recruiting. Not only did he play a big role in Hansberry coming to Virginia Tech, but so too did freshman Neoklis Avdalas. Things didn't go the way that everyone hoped this past season, and Avdalas left in the Transfer Portal and landed at North Carolina with new coach Michael Malone.

This was a coach that Young could not let leave for another program. It's only a matter of time before Frazier gets his shot to run his own program, and Hokies fans hope that will be in Blacksburg when the time is right.

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