Vandy lists every player on the roster as a point guard because Vandy

Vanderbilt has a 6-9, 235-pound point guard on the roster going into 2024-25. The Commodores also have a 6-8, 265-pound point guard. And a 6-7, 220-pound point guard. And another 6-8, 230-pound point guard.

Wait, they’re all point guards? Yes, they’re all point guards.

When you’re picked to finish dead last in the SEC under first-year coach Mark Byington, you gotta do what you gotta do, right? Bring on the gimmicks — anything to bring attention to your program.

That’s the case for the former James Madison coach, who has decided to list every single player on the roster as a point guard going into his debut season in the SEC. All 18 Commodores, including walk-ons and scholarship players, no matter the size — 5-10 to 6-9 — are considered point guards under Byington.

If that sounds ridiculous, it’s because it is. But the official roster doesn’t lie — check it out for yourself if you don’t believe me.

Apparently it’s because Byington wants his players to “think and act like point guards on the floor,” according to Joey Dwyer of VandySports.com.

Vanderbilt basketball has every player listed as a point guard, which is intentional.

Mark Byington has said in the past that he wants multiple guys to think and act like point guards on the floor. pic.twitter.com/Jces1BlHku

— Joey Dwyer (@joey_dwy) October 30, 2024

The quotes add up, this clearly being a point of emphasis since he first replaced Jerry Stackhouse this offseason.

“My best teams have always had two point guards on the floor where they can interchange with each other, they can also share responsibilities,” Byington told Dwyer this summer. “The way our style fits there’s not gonna be one predominant ball-handler and everyone else runs away.”

Feels a little dramatic to go from two point guards on the floor to five (or 18 on the roster), but hey, if that’s what works for you, Coach. He won 32 games last year at James Madison and upset Wisconsin in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, so what do I know?

Kentucky travels to Nashville to take on the fighting point guards of Vanderbilt on Jan. 25, followed by a rematch in Lexington on Feb. 19.