Jimmer Fredette's next big shot will be the one he attempts trying to prove wrong a new set of critics who question whether he can thrive at the NBA level.
For BYU, the task of moving forward without the Jimmer may be just as challenging.
The Cougars, whose best season on record ended abruptly with Thursday night's overtime loss to Florida in the NCAA round of 16, have to replace not only all-time scoring leader Fredette but all-time steals leader Jackson Emery and a third senior captain, Logan Magnusson, who helped in every other way.
BYU also won't have all-everything freshman Kyle Collinsworth next season as he heads to Russia in a few months for his Mormon mission.
The new-look Cougars also will jump to a new conference, leaving the Mountain West for the West Coast Conference, where a Gonzaga team they knocked off in the third round awaits.
While head coach Dave Rose is under contract through 2014, he no doubt will see his name pop up for top vacancies, all of which makes for an interesting year to come.
First comes getting through loss No. 5 in a 32-win season.
''We've been through a lot as a group,'' Rose said after Thursday's 83-74 defeat. ''This will probably feel better later. The toughest thing for us coaches is that we don't get a chance to bounce back from this. That seems to be a real trademark of our guys and our program, that we have a chance to bounce back after we get beat, and this time we don't have that chance.''
Rose, though, said he still enjoys the challenge each year brings.
''The most exciting thing is the fact that you get to be on a team,'' said Rose, who has grown more appreciative of each step in the process since battling cancer two years ago. ''You get to coach a team. You get to start from the beginning of the season, the offseason, and work toward it and watch guys improve, watch guys gain confidence, watch your team come together and hopefully you can be so successful.''
No player may have made that journey more enjoyable than the 6-2 Fredette, who helped BYU to a 114-27 record and four NCAA tournament berths in his four seasons.
Rose thought back to Fredette's freshman year when he averaged 7.0 points and made 43 3-pointers - all in a reserve role for a team that won 27 games and the Mountain West Conference title.
''He comes into my office after his freshman season and says, 'Coach, I'm your point guard next year and I'll spend all summer working on everything that I need to work on so I can run the program,''' Rose recalled. ''And the next year he's first-team all-Mountain West Conference. That's a hard thing to do.
''And the next year he goes back to work again in the summer and he comes back and he's an All-American. And then he decides to take his name out of the NBA draft and he comes back. And to start the season, he's on eight preseason All-America teams. Now our conversations are, 'OK, people believe you're good. Now you have to be good.'''
Fredette ended up leading the nation in scoring, breaking Danny Ainge's all-time scoring mark and is a favorite to win various player of the year awards.
Though Fredette couldn't win his last game and take the Cougars to the round of eight as Ainge did 30 years ago, Rose said the humble Glens Falls, N.Y., guard goes out a winner.
''That's his legacy,'' Rose said. ''He just helped his team find ways to win games.''
NBA scouts will consider that rather than base judgments on one less-than-stellar shooting performance.
Workouts for NBA teams await, and then the draft in late June, where he could be a lottery pick or a late first-rounder.
Regardless of where Fredette ends up, there's no question BYU will look different without the Jimmer.
The Cougars won't start from scratch.
Forwards Noah Hartsock (8.6 points, 5.9 rebounds), Charles Abouo (7.3, 4.9) and James Anderson (1.2, 1.3) are expected back for their senior seasons. Forward Stephen Rogers, who had a big impact in the win over Gonzaga, will be a junior as will guard/forward Brock Zylstra.
Redshirt freshman guard Anson Winder will get a chance to show what he can do, as will top recruit DeMarcus Harrison and UCLA transfer Matt Carlino, who could be the next point guard once the fall semester finals are done.
The Cougars also should get two other big men back, if the school reinstates Brandon Davies after his well-publicized honor-code violation, and Chris Collinsworth recovers from a knee injury.
Two other players with local ties - 6-10 Nate Austin and 6-10 Ian Hayward - return from their church missions as freshmen.
''It's been an incredible journey,'' said Emery, who may have to go to Europe if he wants to play at the professional level. ''One thing we wanted to do with this program is build it up and every year get better. I feel like every year we've gotten better. We've raised expectations. And we've had a lot of doubt on the outside, but all that matters is what we believe as a team. I thought we accomplished what we wanted to and beyond.''
