Strengths and Weaknesses heading into the 2021-22 Season

An in-depth look at the strengths and weaknesses for the Seminoles in 2021-22.

Author:
Austin Veazey
Publish date:
Oct 19, 2021 1:46 PM EDT

Anytime you lose 65% of your scoring production from a season ago, there will be questions. What is a facelift going to do to this team? What can they rely on? What are some things they’ll struggle with? What are the things we don’t know? We’ll be answering these questions and more in this week’s 2021-22 FSU Basketball Season Preview.

Strengths

3-Point Shooting

Last season, Florida State shot 37.6% from the 3-point line throughout the season (25th highest nationally), and 40.3% in conference play. Their 37.6% from the arc was their best since the 2013-14 season. While MJ Walker and Sardaar Calhoun walk out the door, who were both elite shooters, Scottie Barnes and RaiQuan Gray are also gone, who were statistically the two worst shooters on the team last season.

In their places are Caleb Mills, Matthew Cleveland, and Jalen Warley, who are all at the very least respectable shooters, and have the potential to be very good shooters. You still have Anthony Polite, who led the team in 3PT% at 43.6%, but you also return Malik Osborne, RayQuan Evans, and Wyatt Wilkes who were all north of 36% from 3 last season. The only perimeter player that we’re not sure on as far as shooting is Cam’Ron Fletcher, but his shot looks much more fluid in the few clips we’ve seen from practice and in offseason videos.

Shot Blocking

Despite not a single player averaging more than 1.5 blocks per game, Florida State still finished top-15 in block rate a season ago, and that is also something that should not change. FSU’s defense is predicated on weak side help and collapsing on drives to really protect the rim. Everything we’ve heard so far is the defense should once again be tremendous, and the length of this team is spectacular, as we’ve come to expect from Leonard Hamilton led teams.

With guys like John Butler and Malik Osborne that can play both on the perimeter or in the post, guys like Anthony Polite, Matthew Cleveland, and Caleb Mills that can guard any opposing guard, and three 7-footers at the 5 in Tanor Ngom, Quincy Ballard, and Naheem McLeod… Florida State can continue to terrorize opponents.

Ball-Handling

This was arguably FSU’s biggest weakness a season ago, but now it’s arguably one of their biggest strengths. RayQuan Evans and Jalen Warley are true point guards, whereas Scottie Barnes was still learning the nuances of the position a season ago, Caleb Mills wants the ball in his hands often, Anthony Polite was recruited by a lot of teams to play point guard out of high school, Matthew Cleveland is great with the ball in the open floor, and there are even some sightings of John Butler bringing the ball up in practice. Anybody should be able to push the pace on this team, which is a good thing given how guard-heavy college basketball has become recently.

Question Marks/Weaknesses

Where Does Scoring Come From?

Florida State has always relied upon a multitude of guys to get scoring, and this year it’s no different. Caleb Mills and Anthony Polite will be able to hold their own, but outside of that, there is no clear option. In a complicated system with a lot of youth and inexperience, the offense may be tough to get going in the first couple of months while they get used to how this offense operates.

With so much youth, there will be a couple of head-scratching decisions and a couple of rushed shots, but a guy like Matthew Cleveland may be looked upon as a guy that can create his own look early and often throughout the season. If he in particular struggles, there may be some low-scoring outings early in the season.

How do the Bigs Handle Playing on the Perimeter?

Coach Hamilton made it clear at ACC Tip-Off that FSU will stay switching 1-5 on defense. Are Florida State’s 7-footers going to be quick enough/smart enough to keep up with the Kihei Clark’s and Isaiah Wong’s of the conference? We saw many teams isolate against FSU’s bigs to force the switch and isolate. They were doing that against a really quick 7-footer in Balsa Koprivica. Now with Tanor Ngom, Quincy Ballard, and Naheem McLeod, how are they going to be able to hold up against these guards?

Just How Deep is Florida State?

Florida State prides itself on its depth, but just how deep are the Seminoles? You know Anthony Polite, Caleb Mills, and Malik Osborne will be steady, solid contributors; RayQuan Evans, Matthew Cleveland, and Jalen Warley should see big roles, then Wyatt Wilkes and Cam’Ron Fletcher should see playing time, but there are absolutely question marks about their play. All of the bigs have inexperience and doubts, though Tanor Ngom is likely to get the most burn there. John Butler needs to add a lot of weight and he’s not guaranteed to see a lot of playing time.

So if you’re keeping track, that’s 8-9 guys that will get the bulk of the minutes, but even most of them are either new or have inconsistent tendencies. And we know Hamilton likes to go 10-11 deep in the rotation. Will they be able to this season?