Sanford's departure leaves Georgetown with more depth issues

On Friday, it was announced that Georgetown guard Vee Sanford would be transferring from the University. While it doesn't seem to be a big issue on paper, the loss of Sanford could increase in significance as the 2011-2012 season approaches.

For the Hoyas, his exit leaves them in a catch-22 situation.

With the commitment last week of small-forward Otto Porter, the Hoyas had 14 players for only 13 available scholarships, meaning, somebody would have to go. With Sanford's departure, no player has to lose their scholarship. On the flip side, Sanford's departure leaves a huge hole in the depth of Georgetown's backcourt. With only one shooting guard recruit arriving next season, the Hoyas could once again be faced with the type of depth issues that have plagued them for the past two seasons.

Sanford, a 6-foot-3 sophomore guard from Lexington Kentucky, had a productive season off of the bench, despite being part of a backup-backcourt timeshare with freshman Markell Starks. Sanford, at 6-foot-3, has a long frame and used his reach to constantly fill up the stat sheet, but whether he got on the court or not was always the bigger question. He did not see any time in five games this season, yet logged double-digit minutes six times.

Surprisingly enough, when senior guard Chris Wright broke his hand late in the season against Cincinnati, it was the freshman Starks who saw an increased role, not Sanford. In the final six games, all losses, Starks averaged 14.6 minutes to Sanford's 5.8. Despite these numbers, Sanford had statistically a better season that Starks, not to mention a better understanding for the Georgetown offense and expectations of head coach John Thompson III.

With the departure of guards Austin Freeman and Chris Wright, the backcourt would appear to be open for the taking. Sophomore Hollis Thompson will likely start at small forward, and Jason Clark at shooting guard, which would mean, either Starks or Sanford would start at the point. Of Georgetown's five commitments for 2011, only one, Jabril Trawick, is a guard.

As of now, the Hoyas backcourt for 2011-2012 consists of Starks, Clark and recruit Jabril Trawick. Small forward Thompson can play at the two if necessary, and Aaron Bowen can as well, although he rarely sees any playing time, and was injured for most of the season. If Sanford had stayed, his presence on the bench may have become more valuable than anything he would have done on the court.

Without Sanford, the Hoyas will have just four backcourt options all together. What if Clark gets into foul trouble as he did so often last season? what happens if somebody gets injured or is having an off-night? Without Sanford, the answer doesn't seem to be anything close to clear.

The issue of depth and playing time is an interesting one with Georgetown because just two years ago, the Hoya's couldn't find enough time for their backcourt players, and now it seems like in 2011-2012, they won't have enough. This time around, it may be the frontcourt that has playing time issues. Next season the Hoyas will return senior Henry Sims, junior Jarielle Benimon, sophomores Nate Lubick and Moses Ayegba, along with recruits Mikael Hopkins, Tyler Adams, Greg Whittington and Otto Porter. The problem is that all eight of these players will be expecting playing time next season, and with Hollis Thompson cemented at the starting small forward position, and 6-foot-4 guard Jason Clark is capable of playing their as well, it leaves only two spots available for eight players.

It would not be surprising to see one of these players transfer in the next 24 months. After all, since John Thompson III took over at Georgetown in 2005, six players have transfered out. But Georgetown's inability to evenly recruit positional players has been a problem in the past, and it does not look to be changing soon. In 2007, a year after Georgetown reached the Final Four, they had five players vying for three frontcourt positions. A year later two of them (Vernon Macklin and Nikita Mescheriakiov) transferred.

If Georgetown's backcourt was too full, then their frontcourt was too thin. With Sanford's departure it appears to be the exact opposite now.

It is well known that many in the Georgetown program believe Starks is the next great Hoya point guard, which would make Sanford the odd man out. It is never easy for an upperclassmen to have to sit behind a underclassmen, especially if their abilities and talent are virtually identical. While it is unclear where Sanford plans on transferring to, he has the talent to be a starter at a decent amount of BCS-conference schools.

But what Sanford needs most is a fresh start, and a system where there isn't an heir-apparent and a fully-loaded depth chart. For the Hoyas, they need continuity in positional recruiting.