Virginia Tech basketball underwent an array of change for the second straight season, only retaining five players from its 2025-26 unit. The Hokies lost Neoklis Avdalas (North Carolina), Tobi Lawal (graduated), Jailen Bedford (eligibility), Christian Gurdak (Rutgers) and Jaden Schutt (Kansas State), among others.
Still, the path is there for the Hokies to carve out a solid niche in the ACC this upcoming season. Virginia Tech retained guard Ben Hammond (junior in 2026-27) and forward Amani Hansberry (senior), providing stability at two key positions for the Hokies. Hansberry can be able to play at both the four or the five, depending on the matchups that Virginia Tech wants to take advantage of. If playing a rebounding-heavy team, the Hokies can utilize a lineup that plays both Hansberry and San Diego State transfer big Miles Heide, a senior who projects to be a solid offensive rebounder with a more raw offensive makeup.
Though Heide isn’t as polished as Gurdak was last season – the now-Rutgers-bound big posted 17 points and 19 rebounds against then-No. 21 Virginia Dec. 31 – he provides a similar mean, and he should slot in as a experienced defensive option. Elsewhere in the battle, Sin’Cere Jones returns after a lower-bdoy injury cut his season short after 11 games. Jones was a relative non-factor on the offensive end, though he shined at points, particularly against Elon Dec. 20, where he logged a game-turning block. While I don’t think that Jones will start in 2026-27, I do think that his retainment was critical for the sole reason that it adds another body with experience under Young’s system, allowing for the players around Jones to assimilate into Young’s structure.
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The guard rotation appears to have more malleabiltiy than the frontcourt – Oklahoma transfer Kuol Atak could play the three or the four, but his weight (192 pounds) leads me to think he’ll run at the three-spot unless he bulks up – and that starts with the budding Hammond. The 5-foot-11 rising junior totaled 14.9 points per game in league play last season, punctuated by a 30-point outburst against Virginia Dec. 31. Hammond also ended the year with a 23-point performance against Wake Forest in an eventual 95-89 overtime loss that concluded Tech’s season.
Alongside Hammond, Florida Atlantic guard Isaiah Elohim likely slots in as the off-ball guard, with the aforementioned Atak manning the three-spot. Elohim averaged 12.4 points per game as a sophomore for Florida Atlantic after a year at USC. Virginia Tech will be his third school in as many years. Meanwhile, Atak shined in limited minutes, totaling 7.0 points in 12.4 minutes per game with a 41.3% clip from beyond the arc.
Behind Hammond and Elohim, experienced senior Jaylen Curry comes over from Oklahoma State after averaging 10.1 points for the Cowboys in 2025-26. Junior Tyler Johnson is back from an abbreviated 2025-26 season impacted by a lower-body injury, while Stetson transfer Ethan Copeland slots in as one of Virginia Tech’s primary sharpshooters; he went 42.9% from three-point range last season. Elsewhere in the lineup, guards Ned Hull and Eltayeb Eltayeb appear to be solid rotational pieces, with Eltayeb – a Prep All-American Honorable Mention that took a post-graduate year – a likely longer-term piece if he sticks around. The same presumably holds true for centers Musa Sagnia and Solomon Davis, depending on the level of attrition that the frontcourt undergoes this coming season. Virginia Tech went eight- to nine-deep depending on the game last season, so at the time of writing, here’s the nine I’d go with to earn the lion’s share of minutes: Hammond, Hansberry, Elohim, Atak, Curry, Heide, Copeland, Johnson, Jones.
At the time of writing, Virginia Tech’s first known game is set for Nov. 3 against Coppin State.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/virginiatech as Virginia Tech Men’s Basketball’s 2026-27 Roster Outlook As We Enter June.
