Hello, NIT opponent. I'm here to answer the questions you haven't asked, so pay attention.
1. How did FSU end up in the NIT?
My preseason prediction was that FSU would go 19-11 and grab an 11-seed in the dance. In reality they went 18-12, and then 1-1 in the ACCT, which was good enough to host your team in the NIT. You could say that losing three players for the season hurt FSU, or you could say that life is hard in the ACC. Actually, you can say whatever you want. I don't even know you.
2. Why do we have fans who showed up at every home game dressed as giant strips of bacon?
Well, one of our star players is 6-6 freshman Dwayne Bacon, who led Florida State in scoring at 15.6 per game. He takes over 30% of the shots when he's on the floor, but can be inefficient largely because he jacks too many 3s where he's just a 29% shooter. Other than that, he's a stud.
3. Who are the other stars?
Fellow freshman Malik Beasley was just behind Bacon at 15.4 per game. He's a ridiculous athlete and will likely hurt one of your players feelings by dunking on him, but he's a really nice guy off the court, and has two parents who are actors. He's also made 38% of his 3s, so lookout for that.
4. Key role players?
Sophomore Xavier Rathan-Mayes (yes, the guy who scored 30 points in just over 4 minutes against Miami), can be an electric point guard when he's dialed in and doing what the coaches ask of him. Or he can be sitting next to the coaches and watching. Could go either way. At his current pace he'll finish top-5 all time in points and assists if he stays all four years.
Senior Devon Bookert will be the guy diving on the floor, chasing your point guard down from behind and poking the ball away, sneaking up on your bigs while they're making their moves, and generally being the pest that everyone loves to have on their team and every opponent can't stand. Oh, and he can shoot. You might look at his 41% 3-point shooting, and say "yeah, he's alright", but he played through a wrist injury early in the year. Against ACC opponents he's made 50% of his attempts from beyond the arc.
5. Why won't the announcers shut up about FSU being so tall?
I wish I had the answer here. Michael Ojo - who is the largest human being you've ever seen if you've seen him - hasn't played a single minute because he tore his giant meniscus. Chris Koumadje is 7-4, but he should have redshirted and only plays because we have zero front court depth. That leaves 7-3 Boris Bojanovsky who is solid but won't kill you, and 6-9 Jarquez Smith who can jump out of the gym (and will if you threaten a pump fake). Those two cannot be on the floor at the same time, however, because that's all FSU has for front court players. Our power forward used to be our point guard.
6. What is FSU good at?
Does your team give up a lot of transition buckets? Yes? Well, good luck next year. The Noles are one of the best transition teams in the nation. Devon Bookert leads the country in made 3s in transition, and Bacon, Beasley, and XRM run the break as pretty as you've seen.
7. Then why isn't FSU better?
Because our defense is garbage. You have to get stops to get into transition, and FSU can't get stops. If you have players who are adept at dribble penetration then bet the house on your team.
Thanks for reading, and good luck (not really).