average at ACC level especially if he does not shoot well.

If he shoots well he is one of the most dangerous weapons in the entire conference. He's had a rough year, and things off the court are likely the reason for that struggle. Wishing he was gone to open up a scholarship isn't the smartest thing to do. Who in the transfer portal can VT get that is better than the good version of Maddox? If you can resolve his off the court issues, he is very much worth the scholarship. If you can't, the yes absolutely move on

with the uncertainty around his availability and performance. I think last year should serve as good learning for Coach Young. Yes, we had some injuries, but really it happens to other teams every year. If he really planned to have Rice be our backup PG and also the first wing play coming off the bench, he was setting himself up for failure. At the same time, he chose to waste one scholarship last year. That didn't have to have a home run find, anyone better than Camden Johnson would be an upgrade and probably would help some last year. I think this is a big off-season for Coach Young. I am pretty sure he will reflect on how he builds his roster especially finding the balance on the defense and athleticism part, and also how he practices. I just think we have too many below-average individual defenders to be an even above-average defensive team. Also we just don't do a lot of things a good team normally does especially on the defensive side such as occasional zone, or press etc. Sometimes, that's the difference between wins and losses, especially in the tournament.

(Which you should read as: "naturally the staff has way more information on their roster than I ever could") I personally would add another wing, yes. But someone else will still need to move along in order to replace Mutts. There are many reasons to save a scholarship and there are many reasons why it could happen to you and not be ideal. I wont pretend to know the circumstances of what led to that decision, but I will say that I would never leave a scholarship open, but especially in a year where 2 players will redshirt

tough decision on the personnel. It just doesn't make sense for you to have so many 5 only players who can't play major minutes for you: Kidd, Poteat, and Wessler. Basile could probably play a few minutes of 4 with the right matchup, but I also consider him 5 only because we just don't currently have a good defensive 5 to play with him to make it work. With two open scholarships, then we can find a Mutts replacement and a wing. ** Edited by icelus at 3/19/2023, 11:42:16 AM

Lost his Dad after a long battle with cancer. And came back 10 days later. In January. That's real grief. And I can't imagine being as strong as he was. And it was very public. I still think about him a lot. ** Edited by WildTurkE at 3/18/2023, 7:49:11 PM

And as fans, we don't need to know.

To treat him with anything but compassion

** Edited by TheGreatGobbler at 3/18/2023, 3:01:57 PM ** Edited by TheGreatGobbler at 3/18/2023, 3:02:37 PM

The question is why it's any business of fans to know what he's going through

Agreed this is clearly a private matter however now that student athletes have signed NIL deals and fans are essentially paying them to play at the schools, shouldn’t they be held responsible to the people paying them if they suddenly stop playing? Is it the same as not showing up for work anymore? Just curious to what others think, not trying to bash anyone.

Then they can work it out NIL is a catch-all term for a broad spectrum of things. If you buy a Maddox jersey and Maddox gets a cut, it is a NIL deal and you are not owed any explanation whatsoever. If Maddox is paid NIL money to sing a 5 second jingle for a car dealership and he does so, it is a NIL deal and you are not owed any explanation whatsoever. If Maddox is paid to have a camp with his name attached to it, it is a NIL deal and you are not owed any explanation whatsoever. If you are a collective and you have bought the rights to Maddox's NIL, and Maddox tanks his NIL value, I think it's likely that deal will not be renewed. You're well within your right to ask him what's up at that point, but again, if he declines to answer you're not owed any explanation whatsoever. In each case, the person paying money in NIL has the right to discontinue giving money to Maddox...but you are not owed an explanation. If Maddox ever decides to answer on his own time what happened then that's completely up to him. But NIL deals are not salary. You are not their employer. You can speak your mind with your pocketbook, but again...finally...you are not owed any explanation whatsoever. ** Edited by GCHokie34 at 3/19/2023, 12:04:56 AM

At VT or wherever he goes.

the situation more than the fans since being closer to the situation, particularly since his return to campus, they likely have more info? This is not to say the VT fans, in the majority, have behaved fine. As usual, it is the vocal minority that get the attention as they behave like the north end of a southbound mule thinking they are owed an explanation immediately rather than trusting the adults close to the situation to handle it properly. ** Edited by 2hhoop3 at 3/18/2023, 12:20:30 PM