Important Spring Ahead For Virginia Basketball

In the aftermath of Virginia’s disappointing early exit from the NCAA Tournament, there’s little time for self pity.  This will be an important spring for the program, with key decisions that need to be made soon.  

Facing Scrutiny

Tony Bennett and his staff are catching a lot of heat right now.  From the national media, from their own fans, and everyone in between.  The Wahoos failed to score 50 points in five of their last nine contests, capped by the embarrassing 67-42 tourney loss to Colorado State.  They’ll finish ranked outside the top 200 nationally in offensive efficiency.  

This year’s team had flaws that caught up to them late in the season, as opponents sort of figured out the blueprint of how to defend them.  With such poor results, it’s also fair to criticize their offensive schemes or overall philosophy.  While occasional scoring struggles aren’t new for Bennett’s teams, it reached hopelessness too often this season.  The staff would surely be doing plenty of self examination this offseason anyway, regardless of outside scrutiny. 

Rumors persist that Tony Bennett is considering retirement after this season. I would be very surprised if he walks away. He’s been even more involved than usual in recruiting and fundraising during the season.  Actions that don’t align with a coach headed out the door. Many fans are clamoring for staff changes, specifically to bring in fresh offensive ideas.  I don’t know whether to expect that.  It’ll be an interesting topic to watch in the coming months. 

The immediate challenge is for Bennett to have a vision to sell recruits, especially potential transfer targets, to reassure them that the team they’re joining won’t suffer the same fate going forward.  

Stay or Go

The transfer portal officially opened on Monday.  Players have until the May 1st deadline to enter.  That’s the first step in the season’s aftermath, getting their own house in order to determine what additions they may need.  Under Bennett, UVA has been pretty good about getting quick transfer decisions.  Typically, verdicts are in and announced within two weeks.

There aren’t many rumors about Virginia players transferring.  Yet in the current environment, they’ll almost surely lose someone.  Every player who’s fallen behind expectations, either in terms of performance or playing time, is a candidate.  There’s no shortage of those.  A lot will depend on the feedback players receive in their postseason meetings with Bennett.  Frankly, it’s in his interest to free up space.  

Then, there’s Ryan Dunn. The sophomore forward is being projected as a first round NBA Draft pick.  He’s slid in recent mock drafts, down to the mid 20s as opposed to the teens earlier.  If he does indeed receive a first round grade, he’ll almost surely turn pro as nearly every player does in that position.  However, it’s also likely that he’ll start the process in the testing lane so that he can keep the option of returning to college.  If so, he’ll have until the May 29th withdrawal deadline to make a final decision. 

Eyeing The Portal 

UVA needs to add pieces to improve their team.  That’s obvious.  But how many and what type of players they add is dependent on who leaves.  There’s only one available scholarship as things stand.  And it will be a bit of a balancing act to add players while maintaining paths for talented young players to earn meaningful roles next season.  

They’ll likely be after a floor spacer at the power forward spot, with a good possibility of a starting job available should Dunn turn pro.  That would be a very attractive opening for a transfer.  It’ll be their first priority in the portal.  They’ve already been tied to a couple names fitting the description, like Michael Ajayi from Pepperdine, but it’s too early to consider anyone a serious target.  

Shot creation at guard is a desperate need, with Reece Beekman moving on.  Early signs point to them planning to address that through the portal, assuming the roster space is there.  They’ve reportedly contacted a few guards, but no one that jumps out so far.  

Beyond that, we’ll see.  This could be a year in which if the right player is there, they’ll go for it even if he’s not exactly what they set out looking for.  And the talk is that Bennett is starting to embrace NIL a bit more and is willing to play up what they have going on that front.  And what they have going is pretty good.  That should help get their foot in a few more doors. Like it or not, NIL is a big factor in transfer recruiting.  

Although the transfer cycle moves quickly, it does take a little bit of time to get into full swing.  There’s a brief dead period during the Final Four, which lifts on Friday April 12th.  That weekend is the start of the busy visit season.  

Scheduled Visits 

High school recruiting takes a backburner until portal madness is over.  But there will be some activity blended in.  UVA already has two official visitors scheduled for late April, right in the heart of it all.  Both 2025 guards, Gonzaga (DC) combo Derek Dixon on the 20th and Sidwell (DC) point guard Acaden Lewis on the 22nd.  Neither is expected to make a decision at that time, but they’re both important recruits for the Wahoos.  

The early plan for UVA in 2025 has been to add one guard and one forward.  Plans can easily change however, depending on how the roster shakes out after the transfer chaos is finished.  

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(Featured Image Credit: Getty)