Leonard Hamilton says he feels ‘totally responsible’ for Florida State’s situation

It’s been a rough season for Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton. Despite a thrilling 85-84 upset of No. 13 Miami on Saturday, the Seminoles are just 9-20 and guaranteed their first losing record since 2004-05.

It will also be just the third losing season in Hamilton’s 21 years at FSU. In his postgame press conference, Hamilton took full ownership for the struggles, saying he didn’t do as well as he could have with roster management in the offseason. He mentioned he did not expect John Butler to leave for the NBA and should have been more clear with some seniors who chose not to use their extra year of COVID eligibility to return about their pro chances.

“I feel totally responsible for the position that we’re in,” he said. “As a coach, you need to understand that people will do what they feel is best for them. I feel guilty that I didn’t maybe take a little bit more time and explain to a couple of guys that decided they graduated. They reserve the right to go realize their dream, but they’re coming off a year of injuries. I thought the wise thing was for them to maybe take the COVID year and improve everything. That’s not for me to say.

“I think I was thinking logical about what’s best for them and for us and I don’t think I articulated that correctly. I didn’t expect to lose John Butler. I thought that he would be back. I had a plan, but I didn’t prepare myself for the unexpected. I can’t blame anybody because the buck stops with me. I got the memo.”

Those departures have led to a lack of experience on the Seminoles’ roster this season. Florida State’s lone senior, Jaylan Gainey, has not played the entire 2022-23 season due to injury. Three of its five starters are underclassmen.

That has caused Hamilton to reevaluate the importance of experience, as well as what are the best ways to teach younger players.

“This is the first time we’ve had to go in with first and second-year players,” he said. “Sometimes as a coach, you think you’re doing a really good job coaching when you’ve got those juniors and seniors and third and fourth-year players on your team. But when you get some first and second-year players maybe not of the one-and-done level, now all of a sudden you realize how important age, experience and maturity is to your team. This team will be a little better as we move forward. We’ll make the adjustments that we need.”

Saturday’s win was certainly a sign of progress. Leonard Hamilton was especially pleased with the way the Florida State defense adjusted in the second half, coming back from a 23-point halftime deficit and holding the Hurricanes to just 30 points.

Matthew Cleveland, a second-year player, nailed the game-winning 3-pointer as time expired.

“I’m proud of these guys because I saw them following instructions, communicating and playing with a purpose offensively and defensively,” he said. “The execution was flawless. Defensively, I thought we stepped up and did all the things that we’ve been working on against a really, really good team.

“The people in Miami, they don’t understand how hard it is to play against the University of Miami. They can hurt you at four spots, they spread the floor and sometimes they play five-out in the lane so the gaps are so wide and they have guys driving from the wing with such explosiveness it kind of took us back on our heels. We adjusted mentally at halftime, but they’ve done this to a lot of people and we’re very, very fortunate to come out of here with a victory.”

For now, the Seminoles have avoided tying a school record for most losses, which is 21 in the 2000-01 season. They have two more regular season games remaining, beginning with North Carolina on Monday, as well as the ACC Tournament.