Let's face it. This team is not going to be very good.

The Nittany Lions have lost their top two scorers from last season, have no inside presence with Aaron Johnson on the shelf and are coming off of back-to-back 7-21 seasons. Even with the hope that a new season and a new coach generates, there's no conceivable way this team can contend for a Big Ten title. Or a postseason tournament bid. Or a winning record, for that matter.

Truth be told, the Lions may improve this season if only because it would be hard for them to play much worse than they have the past two years.

But forget all of that negativity. Accept that the team will struggle and then just throw the scores of these games out the window.

Because this season is not about wins and losses.

This is the season to establish the new foundation of the program, the kind DeChellis had at East Tennessee State -- albeit on a much larger scale. Now is when the team can develop a cohesion that the returning unit never seemed to show under Jerry Dunn.

This is the time to teach.

Should Ed DeChellis resurrect this program from the proverbial ashes, this will be the season that the Blue and White faithful will call the turning point -- and it won't be because of the team's record.

It will be because of DeChellis installing a new system for the team and, more importantly, a positive mindset. It will be because the new coach will have changed the public's rather dim perspective of the team. And it will be because of recruiting.

In just a short few months after taking the reins of a program in disarray, DeChellis pulled off what might be the biggest thing to happen to Penn State basketball in the past two years. He landed Marlon Smith.

Smith is the type of recruit that Penn State so desperately needed to get. He's from a strong and respected high school basketball conference and comes with an impressive pedigree. He already seems to have a small but fanatic following after leading the Lions in scoring in the first two exhibition games.

Smith may not be the cornerstone of a program, but if he has success at Penn State, perhaps DeChellis will be able to tap other previously inaccessible regions. The fact that he is already trying to make inroads into urban Philadelphia is a very good sign.

If Smith alone causes word of mouth to spread and attracts even a handful of students to the Jordan Center, then the Lions will have taken the first step toward respect.

Of course, to do all of that, Smith first has to play. And in a season that has little chance of yielding immediate results for the program, he should not only be playing, but starting. The same goes for fellow freshman Ben Luber.

Despite not being the prototypically sized Big Ten guards (both are listed at 6-feet), Luber and Smith will be, in all likelihood, the starting backcourt when the Lions have a more realistic chance of contending.

Why not prepare them for that and start them now? Their relative inexperience would damage a team like Penn State the least. DeChellis of all people recognizes that any significant turnaround won't happen this year, especially by the high standards he is setting.

That's not to say the Lions should abandon players like Brandon Cameron. Cameron, who will also still be around for awhile, should and will see significant time at both guard positions. The complete lack of depth at the guard position will dictate that he'll play.

Injuries and talent, or lack thereof, will dictate players switching positions frequently. Along with Cameron, Jagla, Riley-Smith and Summers will all be moved around the court, especially until Johnson returns from his injury. Fortunately, DeChellis can afford to experiment this season. And if he finds a combination that clicks, then that's already a positive for the future.

Because in this season, the future is what he's building.