Looking Back At Virginia's Whirlwind Spring
With Reece Beekman’s decision this week to return for his senior year, Virginia’s 2023-24 roster is probably set now. That was the last domino to fall in a wild spring for the Hoos. I look back at the good and not so good of the last two months, as well as what’s ahead.
The Best
The best news of the spring came on Wednesday when Reece Beekman elected to remove his name from the NBA Draft and return for his senior season. He made us wait for it. The decision went down to the wire, with ESPN breaking the news just four hours ahead of the withdrawal deadline.
Reece’s draft stock had improved following a strong showing at the NBA Combine. He was slotted as the 43rd pick in ESPN’s most recent mock draft before he pulled out. It was every bit of the close call that it seemed to be. He even had one last workout for an NBA team on deadline day. As late as last week, all signs were pointing toward him turning pro. There was even talk of the coaching staff starting to look around for a potential replacement.
His return is obviously huge for Virginia’s prospects this coming season. This was the biggest recruiting win of the spring for Tony Bennett. With a mostly new cast, having his veteran presence at point guard is invaluable. If he hadn’t returned, UVA would have been projected as a bubble team with potential to be dangerous late in the year. Now, they’ll be back near the top of what should be a very tough ACC.
The most exciting part is we’ll finally get to see Reece running the show for the Wahoos. It wouldn’t have felt right for him to leave without having that opportunity. He said he’s betting on himself by returning, with the goal of going in the first round next year. I wouldn’t bet against him, that’s for sure.
The Good
Transfer recruiting went about as smoothly as you could have possibly hoped for. UVA made three additions through the portal. Big man Jordan Minor was first, followed by guard Andrew Rohde, and lastly forward Jacob Groves. They also added center Anthony Robinson to the 2023 recruiting class in April.
They batted 1.000 on visitors, and did it quickly. Three transfers visited, all three committed. Including Robinson, all in a period of just over two weeks. It was the model of efficiency. The only player they missed out on was 2023 guard Blue Cain. And they almost got him too, despite originally planning to only take one guard between him and Rohde.
The reality of the new environment, where pay-to-play schemes are masked as NIL deals, is that many available transfers aren't really an option for a program like Virginia that plays it straight. Bennett and the staff seem to have figured out their filtering process pretty well, to be able to identify the attainable quality transfers and zero in on them quickly. It’s not nearly as easy as they made it appear from the outside.
All three transfers figure to have large roles this coming season. And former St. Thomas guard Andrew Rohde is a key piece of the young core they’ve assembled. He’s one of eight Wahoos on the roster with 3+ years of eligibility left. The coaching staff did a pretty masterful job of filling urgent needs while continuing to prioritize long-term roster building. Both through the additions of Rohde and Robinson and also by sticking to graduate transfers in spots so as to avoid any interference with high school recruiting.
The Not So Good
Virginia lost three transfers this spring. With all due respect to Francisco Caffaro (Santa Clara) and Kadin Shedrick (Texas), the one that really stung was freshman Isaac Traudt. After redshirting this year, he left for Creighton without ever playing a minute. He was one of the top prizes of their great 2022 recruiting class. Bennett recruited him about as hard as we’ve seen with anyone. They had a lot invested in him and high expectations for his future.
His departure leaves an obvious hole in that young core I mentioned. Graduate transfer Jacob Groves was added to essentially take his place, but that’s just a one-year fix. .They’ll probably be right back shopping the portal for a similar player next year. The problem is compounded by the transfer of Igor Milicic the year before. Those were the two skilled forwards of the future. Neither panned out, at least not at UVA.
The bright side is it leaves a very attractive opening for a 2024 recruit. We’ll see if the coaching staff can capitalize on that.
We'll See
As summer nears, we’re about to enter the heat of the 2024 recruiting cycle. And I have no idea what to expect the results to be. That’s pretty unusual for June. It’s an important class too. Despite having a young team, UVA has clear needs to fill. Yet, there hasn’t been a lot of activity.
The top storyline is Wisconsin Lutheran guard Kon Knueppel. After leading the Nike EYBL in scoring this spring, he would potentially be the biggest recruit of the Bennett era. Absolutely a special player. And it’s mainly between the Hoos and his home-state Badgers right now.
Bennett needs his next point guard. The guy he’s after is Christian Bliss. He’s the one official visitor we know is coming some time this month. With a decision probably not long after. UVA might be kind of the darkhorse in the race, behind Villanova who’s been on his trail for a while now. But Bliss and Knueppel are the two most urgent recruits on the board for the Hoos.
The Jarin Stevenson saga is playing out this month. It’s narrow, but there is a path of hope left for UVA. The first step would be him deciding to stay in the 2024 class.
After that, things get murky. UVA is in the mix for Paul VI wing Isaiah Abraham, but it’s not clear how aggressively they’re pursuing. His cousin, big man Patrick Ngongba, is probably a longshot after Duke offered. And they’re just not that far along with Harvard Westlake (CA) point guard Trent Perry.
Lots of uncertainties. They’re in the fight for a couple heavyweights. We’re virtually guaranteed to have twists ahead and emerging recruits that we haven’t heard of yet. All the makings for a fun summer of recruiting.
(Featured Image Credit: Matt Riley/UVA Athletics)