HOWEVER, it is important to note that these players, as of right now, have only entered the portal; this means that they’re exploring other options, but are still considering staying with W&M. So, if there weren’t enough pressure on the Head Coach hire already, there is now more pressure than ever before.
Sifting through the below tweets is tough, but they remind us how much Coach Shaver and his staff meant to the players. With that being said, we expect (and hope for) a splashy hire to be announced in the (very near) future — by April 12 at the very latest. But we’d be very happy if it happened sooner.
The William and Mary Sports Blog 
I saw someone in this thread mentioned, “Wow, we’ve never seen this before”, referring to the number of transfers following the firing of Tony Shaver. In today’s college basketball landscape, this should have been no surprise….AT ALL. That’s what happens when a coach gets fired & particularly when a coach gets fired unexpectedly.
I wish Dane Fischer all the luck in the world; rebuilding will be a monumental task.
But, I will also state: “This” should not have happened….at least not this year. The entire front line was returning (Milon, Pierce, and Knight) and were ALL juniors. The AD, would should have understood what firing Coach Shaver would trigger, could have taken ZERO risk, allowed Tony to coach these juniors next year (I realize, some are now in grad school, but ALL have 1 year of eligibility left & would have played for Tony next season). If the AD wanted to fire Tony AFTER next season….have at it.
I will also say: W&M would have also had Audige and LJ Owens back, 2 freshmen guards who played a bunch last season. Audige proved: he is a big-time player. And, guess what? Northwestern, a Big Ten school thought so too. All along I have said: lose both Audige & Pierce, the 2 most dynamic players (besides Nathan Knight, whom I expect to return), and this is a MESS. W&M would have easily been the pre-season favorite to win the conference; now they will be in the bottom 2 or 3 for sure.
W&M gets very few chances to be in the NCAA tourney; they’ve been in 4 championship conference games since I’ve been here (11 years). So close to an NCAA automatic bid. But next year, with all starters returning plus a talented 7’0″ transfer from Wisconsin, in my opinion, this would have been their best chance that I have seen to get “in” the tourney. Essentially, that opportunity has had a bomb thrown in on it. Audige is such a big, big loss. Freshmen guards that have that much ability are so rare. As far as Pierce, a 6’7″ kid who could jump out of the gym, shoot, and handle the ball….very rare. Those 2 are just such big, big losses. Milon, the pure shooter…..you can replace him this afternoon. Go to Kentucky, or Indiana, or Ohio and get yourself a shooter this afternoon. But, Audige & Pierce and then even losing LJ Owens……what a shame.
I don’t agree with “Wow; we’ve never seen this before”. I said the moment Tony Shaver was fired that Audige & Pierce, for sure would not return. Pierce obviously can transfer as a grad student, but the NCAA, recently, and especially with freshmen, has often been letting kids like Audige play right away (not sit out a year) when a coach is fired. Did the administration think they could fire Tony & the next man up would get to coach Tony’s players (the best composite talent Tony has EVER had here at W&M)? People who understand/know the current college basketball landscape know better. This mass exodus could have been EASILY predicted.
I actually considered Tony Shaver an “over-achiever”. If I had a criticism of Tony, certainly some of his teams could guard a LOT better. I understand an AD wanting to come in here & putting their stamp on the program. Last season……there were some games where I thought the team could have played better, certainly defended better. But, overall, Tony has done quite well here, especially under the circumstances (I am speaking of not really being able to “hide” kids academically…..W&M has high academic standards). 4 years out of the 11 I have lived here (I’m a basketball person from Indiana & KY.) , Tony has been in the CAA championship game, knocking on the door. What would have been his BEST chance, W&M’s BEST chance….thrown out the door….so needlessly.
In “normal situations” with REAL basketball people in charge, the coach who recruited all the great (maybe 1-time) material, gets to coach the 1-time material. I wish Dane Fischer all the luck in the world. I want to see him do well here. I am just so sorry to see what has transpired here so needlessly. W&M fans may tolerate this; there are some parts of the country where this wouldn’t fly. Obviously, I think this “move” to let Tony go AT THIS TIME was ill-advised to say the least.