Virginia Tech Basketball: How will Hokies replace Khadim Sy for 2018-19?

Khadim Sy has reportedly left Virginia Tech Basketball for the second time. How will this impact the Hokies in the frontcourt for the 2018-19 season?

One of the oddest sagas of college basketball recently has been between big man Khadim Sy and Virginia Tech Basketball program. Prior to the beginning of last season, he unexpectedly left the team and went to Junior College.

Things seemed to change mid-season when Sy left that school and rejoined the Hokies, opting to redshirt for the 2017-18 season. Although they were successful overall and made the NCAA Tournament, the lack of size lowered the ceiling for Virginia Tech.

With just about every one of important coming back and the return of Sy, Virginia Tech was a consensus preseason top-20 team for the 2018-19 season. The Hokies were solid in every aspect and had few flaws on paper. Then came some bad news.

This is a tough break for Virginia Tech in that not only is this the second time a key player has left them but that it happened right before the new season started. There aren’t any transfers, high school or Junior College prospects available that’ll make a huge difference, so the Hokies are already behind the eight ball compared to their ACC counterparts.

When it comes to the on-the-court product, the Hokies will look extremely similar to last year’s team. 6’10 forward Kerry Blackshear once again represents the only true “big man” for the team and will play all of his minutes at the center position. Chris Clarke is another option at the “five-spot” thanks to his good rebounding skills. Because he’s 6’6 though, opposing bigs will exploit that on the defensive end.

Two players who’ll benefit the most from Sy leaving are rising sophomore forward PJ Horne and incoming freshman Landers Nolley. With the four rising seniors along with Nickeil Alexander-Walker already having solidified roles, these underclassmen will now have ample opportunities to establish themselves on the Hokies’ main rotation.

When it comes to Sy, it’s hard to tell what the next step will be for a big man who has great talent but hasn’t been able to fulfill it. Whether another high-major program takes a shot at a player who’ll still have years of eligibility left.

As for Virginia Tech, they finished with a 21-12 (10-8) record and a First Round loss in the NCAA Tournament. With Sy now gone they’ll look eerily similar. Will the result ultimately look the same for the Hokies in 2018-19?