The Daily Nole

Effects of C.J. Walker Transferring from Florida State

Mike Olivella/FSU athletics

A piece of genuinely unexpected news hit the basketball team this week when reports came out that sophomore point guard C.J. Walker was transferring from Florida State. Walker confirmed the news on his Twitter, and the FSU fan base seemed surprised at the development.

It did seem like an odd choice considering that the Seminoles are fresh off an Elite Eight run. It’s not like Walker was an afterthought either: he started 34 games and averaged eight points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists this season. Why would he leave the program?

Regardless of his motivation for doing so, Walker is no longer in the team’s future plans. His departure provokes some interesting (but not overwhelming) difficulties.

Walker was effectively the fourth option for scoring when he was on the court. Obviously, that fluctuated with who rotated in, but there were very few combinations where Walker was the primary scorer in the lineup.

That doesn’t mean he was a drain on the offense however. His bread-and-butter was using his quickness to attack the paint and finish at the rim. He was relatively successful at this, but it never became as consistent as it should’ve been.

Walker also improved his 3-point shot this past season and actually turned into a respectable deep threat. He hit over 35 percent of his deep attempts this season, compared to just 30 percent last year.

Most point guards are expected to run the offense in traditional setups. But FSU head coach Leonard Hamilton never seemed comfortable with Walker as the primary ball handler for extended time. That was a duty reserved for players like Terance Mann, Braian Angola or Trent Forrest.

It became clear as the season went on why he made that decision: Walker would have bad spurts where he’d turn the ball over a disappointing amount with reckless play.

Defensively the Seminoles won’t be missing much with Walker’s departure. Like many guards of smaller stature, Walker contributes to the defense with steals and not much else. He’s not big enough to have an impact at deterring another team’s guard. He can harass them and make it harder to get the ball in their direction, but that’s about it.

Looking at the situation compartmentally doesn’t fully grasp the effects however. Regardless of his defensive shortcomings and spotty offense, Walker was still a more than capable player on the court. You don’t receive over 800 minutes of play unless you’ve proven yourself.

Even the most talented teams require adequate depth. Walker was a good depth option that allowed Hamilton to slowly work in guys like Trent Forrest to the lineup. Walker can be replaced, but no team enjoys seeing experienced starters leave.

With him gone, the focus on Forrest and P.J. Savoy becomes a bit heavier. They can handle it of course, but it might take a while for them to adjust to the new amount of time they’ll receive, although Forrest did play at least 30 minutes in each of FSU’s final eight games this season.

It also means that less experienced players will have the opportunity to prove themselves. Right now the presumed next-man-up would be second-year guard Anthony Polite. He’s a versatile wing option at 6-foot-6 and 210 pounds with a lot of potential on both sides of the court.

Polite fits the mold of players like Mann or Forrest, but he was fairly raw coming out of high school. Despite being ranked as just a 3-star, Polite held offers from schools like Memphis and Miami. Hamilton redshirted him this season for development reasons.

In all likelihood, the team will be looking to the transfer market for a plug-and-play option. It’s too late in the cycle to expect another commitment. There is never a shortage of quality players looking for minutes at a major school, so Florida State can afford to be picky here.

Another option is incoming freshman Devin Vassell. Some injuries would have to happen for him to see genuine reps, but never rule out injury luck when discussing potential depth pieces. Vassell is a 6-5 and 170-pound shooting guard with a great stroke to his game. He’s too small right now to immediately contribute, so he’s a bit of a last resort option at the moment.

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