SEMINOLES AT A GLANCE
Coach: Leonard Hamilton (197-143 record at FSU; 397-353 career record).
2012-13: 18-16 overall, 9-9 ACC (sixth in the conference); lost in the first round of the NIT.
Key returning players: Okaro White, 6-9, Sr., F (12.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg); Devon Bookert, 6-3, So., G (6.5 ppg, 2.4 apg); Kiel Turpin, 7-0, Sr., C (5.4 ppg, 1.3 bpg); Ian Miller, Sr., G (5.3 ppg, 1.9 apg).
Key newcomer: Jarquez Smith, 6-9, Fr., F.
Outlook: The season will hinge on the growth of the sophomores. If they are able to provide consistent points and defense, FSU will be in good shape. If not, the Seminoles could struggle to reach .500.
FSU loses Michael Snaer, who rescued the Seminoles five times with buzzer-beating 3-pointers the last two seasons. Snaer is now playing for a pro team in Italy. Forward Terrance Shannon transferred to VCU, while reserve guard Terry Whisnant transferred to East Carolina.
The team’s lone freshman, Jarquez Smith, is an athletic 6-foot-9 forward who should make an immediate impact. Xavier Rathan-Mayes, one of the nation’s top recruits last spring, could have provided immediate help, but he must sit out this season after being declared ineligible by the NCAA Clearinghouse.
After capturing the program’s first ACC tournament title in March 2012, the Florida State men’s basketball team was forced to rebuild after half its roster graduated.
The only question now: How much longer will the rebuilding process take?
FSU went 18-16 in 2012-13 but fell short of the NCAA tournament. There were frustrating losses to South Alabama, Mercer and Auburn, and the Seminoles then fell in the first round of the NIT at home to Louisiana Tech.
Just two players who were on that ACC championship team — senior forward Okaro White and senior guard Ian Miller — are still in Tallahassee. They will be expected to provide leadership and points for FSU.
But the season will revolve around five sophomores and how well they have grasped coach Leonard Hamilton’s defensive principles and offensive system. Hamilton said he is encouraged with the progress that guards Devon Bookert, Aaron Thomas and Montay Brandon along with centers Michael Ojo and Boris Bojanovsky have made.
“There are little things that they understand now after a year of playing under their belt that they really didn’t accept as freshmen,” Hamilton said. “The biggest transition that we are making right now is to be consistent with our fundamentals and making good decisions.”
Bookert, a 6-foot-3 native of Alaska, averaged 6.5 points and 2.4 assists as a freshman, though the point guard showed his potential with eight assists in a February home win over Boston College.
“It’s playing at that magic level, to turn it up a notch,” Hamilton said. “He’ll show you flashes of what he is capable of doing, and then he gets lax.”
If the sophomores are able to build on their first season in Tallahassee, their talents could blend well with the three seniors.
White averaged 12.4 points and 5.9 rebounds last season. The team’s other seniors, guard Ian Miller (foot) and center Kiel Turpin (knee), have been slowed by injuries. They must remain healthy if FSU is to be competitive.
As a sophomore, White made significant contributions to FSU’s team that won the ACC tournament in 2012. And he has now embraced being a leader like the seniors he played with on that Noles squad.
“I definitely view myself as that leader,” White said. “The younger guys are looking to me as an example.”
One way that White has asserted his leadership is to show FSU’s underclassmen how to dedicate themselves to Hamilton’s defensive principles. Defense was a hallmark of a program that reached the NCAA tournament for four straight seasons before missing out last spring.
With so many freshmen last season, the Noles struggled to fully grasp what Hamilton wanted to do. After leading the nation in field-goal percentage defense in 2011-12, FSU was 221st last season.
White thinks the team has made strides on the defensive end. And FSU must be better defensively in a newly expanded ACC that now includes Syracuse, Notre Dame and Pittsburgh.
“In the past, when we had these great teams, there have been a lot of nights when our offense didn’t look good at all, but our defense is what kept us in the game,” White said. “If we get back to our defensive ways, the way we used to be, I think we’ll be pretty good.”
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