NCAA Basketball: Pros and cons of transfer Khadim Sy's final 3 teams

NCAA Basketball: Pros and cons of transfer Khadim Sy’s final 3 teams

BUFFALO, NY - MARCH 16: Khadim Sy #2 of the Virginia Tech Hokies shoots against Vitto Brown #30 of the Wisconsin Badgers in the first half during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at KeyBank Center on March 16, 2017 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

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HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, KY – JANUARY 20: B.J. Tyson #21 of the East Carolina Pirates looks to pass the ball while defended by Justin Jenifer #3 of the Cincinnati Bearcats in the first half of a game at BB&T Arena on January 20, 2018 in Highland Heights, Kentucky. Cincinnati won 86-60. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

East Carolina Pirates

Pros

There are quite a few pros when it comes to the Pirates of Greenville. The first of which is that I like Joe Dooley. I think he is a good coach and East Carolina hit a home run plucking him from Florida Gulf Coast where he was 114-58.

Secondly, there is a comfort level for Sy here as former Virginia Tech assistant coach Steve Roccaforte is on Dooley’s staff at East Carolina. Roccaforte came to Greenville after four years as an assistant at Virginia Tech and almost certainly has a relationship with Sy.

Keeping the “people formerly of Virginia Tech” train rolling, Tyrie “Pig” Jackson is also heading to East Carolina and Seth LeDay is already there. Jackson and Sy were teammates in Blacksburg in 2017-18 during Sy’s redshirt year. LeDay was not with Virginia Tech very long (1 game), but I am sure Sy and Seth are at the very least acquainted. Since East Carolina is still in consideration for Sy, I am going to assume that relationships with Roccaforte, LeDay and Jackson are positive ones. LeDay is a power forward type as well, but suffered an ACL tear in March against Wichita State. His status for his RS Senior year is still up in the air.

The last pro I have for the Pirates is their conference affiliation. The American Athletic Conference is a good spot for Sy to land and perform at a high level compared to his other finalists. The quality of big men is not as high and the opportunity to put up numbers would be greater.

Cons

Looking at the Pirate roster for next year, they have bodies in the front court. If Sy were to commit to the Pirates he would be their third JUCO player set to join the team that is 6’10 or taller. Ludgy Debaut and Edra Luster are both 6’11 post players who have signed Letters of Intent for next year.

The Pirates also return their best player, Jayden Gardner, for his sophomore year. Gardner is a 6’7 forward who operates in close proximity to the hoop. As a freshman last year he averaged 16 and 9 for Coach Dooley. If LeDay is able to recover from his knee injury, there could be a bit of a log jam in the front court. Sy is the more talented of the incoming JUCO players, but you never know what can happen over the course of the season.

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